Not You
by AKay1297
Summary: Andy McNally has been burned by love a lot recently. Now she's found Nick Collins, a man she thinks she can spend the rest of her life with. But will trust issues from their past, visits from old friends, and a deadly crisis get in the way of their future happiness?
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: I do not own Rookie Blue. I have recently started watching Rookie Blue and I'm obsessed now. It's bad. So I felt compelled to write this fic. Honestly, I don't ship any particular relationship for Andy, so I wanted to write this where all three of her major love interests (Luke, Sam, and Nick) were there at the same time. I'm trying to keep it a secret who she's going to end up with at the end of the story, but I'd love to hear what you guys think. Review and let me know who you think she's going to end up with! And as usual, read, review, and enjoy!**

"McNally! Collins!" Andy McNally and Nick Collins glanced at each other before they stepped tentatively into Frank's office. Everyone knew there were two undercover positions open, and Andy and Nick had been gunning for them. Andy could only hope she was allowed on this one. Considering her track record with undercover, she was surprised she was being considered at all. But she was seizing the opportunity, especially after Sam's surprise announcement. She knew he had been unhappy with her being out in the streets when they had been together, but she didn't think it was sp bad that he couldn't be with her anymore. And she couldn't give up being a cop. It was what she had wanted to do since she was a little girl and she are her father recite his oath every day before work.

Blowing out a breath and shaking her arms, she walked into Frank Best's office to stand next to Nick. She had not idea if Frank was about to tell them that, considering one of them was a rookie and the other an undercover screw up, they should stay the hell away from this op. Then again, he could be giving them the job because no one on the streets really knew them. Frank stood to face them and Andy silenced her thoughts to find out why he called them in. He was quiet for a moment, looking at them each in turn. Andy wanted to squirm under his gaze, not sure if he was upset or not. Finally he opened his mouth. "I assume you both know why I called you in here."

Andy and Nick exchanged a glance. "Um. no, sir, actually we do not."

"Oh." Frank's eyebrows shot up and he regarded them with surprise. "I would have thought it was obvious. You two are my top picks for the undercover operation. No one on the force has objected yet, so as of right now, it looks like you're going to get it. I wanted to warn you so you could start saying your goodbyes." He nodded. "You may go. I'll let you know later if you are going for sure." Nick and Andy nodded and turned to leave, but Andy stopped short when Frank said," McNally." She turned warily, not sure what to expect again. She was sure there was a downside to this, because nothing in her life could ever be good or easy. Frank looked at her with one of the most serious expressions she'd ever seen him wear. "If I catch Swarek anywhere _near_ this op, so help me God, you're not going to be happy with the outcome."

She smiled politely. "Thank you for the warning, sir, but it won't be necessary. We aren't together anymore. I have no reason to see him." Frank eyed her suspiciously for a moment, most likely noting the lack of hurt on her face. He nodded slowly, still watching her as she left the office. Noelle Williams stepped in and stood at Frank's side. "What are you thinking?"

"That she is remarkably emotionless for someone who just ended things with someone she'd been with for… I don't even know how long." He turned to her and wrapped his arms around her, kissing her softly. "She's hurting worse than we thought."

Noelle tipped her head up onto his shoulder and watched the young cop stride through the room to meet with her best friend, Traci Nash. "She's got the rookies. And all of us. Hell, I don't know what Sam was thinking when he told her goodbye."

"He was nervous." Frank turned to his fiancee. "I get it."

"He had to know she was going to stay on the streets whether they were together or not," she argued, not very heatedly and hugged close to Frank's chest. "So all he did was force himself to be worried without being able to hold her at the end of every shift and feel for himself that she made it."

Frank raised his eyebrows at her. "You're more romantic than anyone gives you credit for, you know that? I say we start a bet. I say they're back together in two years."

"Two years?" Noelle sounded surprised. "First of all, they won't be getting back together at all. Second, that's a long time to wait for a turnaround."

He shrugged and pulled her up to side again. "I know I'm right. I could wait twenty years."

She shook her head at her fiancee and pulled a hundred dollars out of her pocket. This would be interesting.

Andy reached Traci and forced herself not to mention the scene from Frank's office. As much as she hated keeping things from Traci, she knew her friend had enough to deal with right now and didn't need to listen to her problems, too. "Hey,Tarce. How are you doing?'

Traci shot her a look. "I know they say it gets better, but that hasn't started yet. Right now it still sucks." Her voice broke. Andy had the suspicion Traci hadn't cried about it yet. She held her friend as she poured out her feelings in broken sobs and sniffles. It lasted almost ten minutes. But Andy didn't really have anywhere to be, so that wasn't a big deal. Well, she told herself, she didn't have anywhere she was needed. Sam had told her to come to the Penny later because he had something for her. And as awful as it made her feel, she was currently considering leaving on the undercover op without saying goodbye. They needed to make a clean break, and they couldn't do that if she went to the bar and said a messy goodbye.

She was so wrapped up in it, she didn't realize Traci had pulled back and was studying her. Crying was an aberration for Traci, and now she looked back to usual self, with the exception of a little runny mascara. "What's wrong, Andy?"

Andy waved her hand and said, "Don't worry about it, really. it's just me over thinking, the way I always do."

Traci narrowed her eyes. "You forget, McNally, I've been doing detective work. And I know that your face is saying something is up. What is it?"

"You have enough to deal with right now," Andy protested. "I don't want to add to that."

"That's nice, Andy, but this is what friends do. We help each other get through the rough parts of life," Traci tilted her head as she spoke. "Now tell me what is bothering you."

Andy sighed. "Okay, don't hate me, but Sam broke up with me. And I didn't tell you when it happened because you had to process what happened to Jerry. And Frank just told me the undercover is as good as mine, and Sam wants me to meet him at the Penny because he has soothing to give me, but I can't leave after going to see him because we need to make a clean break. So I don't know what to do." She took in air, knowing she had just unloaded everything on her friend. It was strange. Both of them were acting different than usual that night. Andy guessed it was probably everything that happened with Jerry and the stress of leaving for the undercover op so soon. But whatever it was, it was making them act weird. Telling Traci when she was leaving wasn't going to be an easy conversation, so she might as well have it now, when they were both acting so out of character. Andy braced herself, blew out a breath, and started talking.

Sam Swarek sat at the bar at the Black Penny, a drink in one hand and a small velvet box held tightly in the other. It was getting late. But he knew McNally. She would show unless something physically stopped her. If she wanted to show. But she had to want to come. He couldn't let himself think different. She was a devoted cop, but she tended to break the rules when it came to him. He took another long pull of his beer. Every passing minute was making him second guess what he felt for her and what knew about her.

When he'd walked in, he'd noticed Gail Peck sitting a little farther down the bar, doing roughly the same thing he was, minus the little velvet box. He knew she and Collins had a thing going on, but he didn't know why she was at the bar without him. As far as Sam knew, they were in good shape. Unlike him and Andy. Finally deciding to see what was going on, he moved down to sit next to Gail. "McNally?" She asked, not taking her eyes off the drink in front of her.

Sam nodded as he swallowed another gulp of beer. The alcohol was slowly beginning to wok its magic. He never drank to get drunk, but he was sure he would start if McNally didn't show up. "Collins?"

"Yep," she said sullenly, adding extra pop to the "p". They sat that way, staring at their drinks and ordering new ones, for another hour and a half. It was one thirty in the morning. Gail spoke first. "They're not coming." Sam didn't have to say anything. He knew she was right but he couldn't make himself say it. He thought he knew McNally, thought he knew everything about her, from the way she laughed to the way took on a challenge to the way she attacked her pancakes at breakfast. He'd tried to memorize every little part of her so that he knew she wasn't different or hurt when she finished a shift. He didn't worry as much that way. Which wasn't saying that much because he still worried _a lot_. Gail stood suddenly. "Time to go home, Swarek. We need to move on." With that, she picked up her jacket and walked outside. He watched her hail a cab to settle his instincts to protect and serve and fight off the effects of alcohol to do so. He sat there for another twenty minutes, not knowing what to do with himself.

He glanced down at the little box in his hand. He flipped open the top of the box with his thumb, looking down at the simple diamond set in white gold. He thought of all the reasons he'd bought the thing in the first place, of all the things he loved about Andy McNally. He snapped it shut, ending that chapter in his life. Tomorrow night, after he'd slept off the God awful hangover he planned on drinking himself into, he would take Gail's advice and begin to move on.

"This is it?" ANdy set down her bag in the apartment they were given for the undercover operation. She and Nick had found out from Frank they were definitely leaving that night. A few hours later, and they were in their cover apartment. The cameras, much like the ones Boyd had set up in Sam's cover apartment, could be turned off, but they were cautioned not to take too much time off the record. Andy couldn't help but relive the hours she'd spent in his cover apartment as they toured their own. They were posing as a couple who were willing to do some dirty deeds to make some good cash, and the apartment was their sanctuary. They wouldn't be able to do everything they wanted, though. Sam said it was a lot of book reading. Andy had taken that into account when she packed Moby Dick, The Odyssey, and Jane Eyre into her bag. She had also grabbed a blank notebook and a pen, thinking it would be… therapeutic, maybe, to write down everything that happened and everything she was feeling. She knew she and Nick were going to be playing nefarious characters, so she knew she wasn't going to be comfortable with everything they had to do. Writing down could be a way she could get it all out.

"You know, this place is pretty nice," Nick said, kicking off his shoes and flopping down on the couch. "I could get used to this."

Andy shook her head and smiled at him. "You could get used to anything. You spent so much time in the army anything seems like a palace." He snorted and a threw a pillow at her.

"So…" he trailed off when she looked over at him. "I heard about you and Swarek." She was silent as he looked at her with a measure of concern. "He's an idiot."

She laughed without amusement. "Yeah, that's what Traci said, too. But I can't blame him. He was doing what he thought was best."

"He's still an idiot," Nick said, shaking his head at her. "Gail and I aren't together anymore."

"I know," she moved around the couch and sat down next to his feet. "She told me about it."

He nodded. "She wanted me to meet her at the Penny tonight."

Andy couldn't hide her surprise. "She wanted to meet you? Sam wanted to meet me." She still felt guilty she hadn't gone, but she knew if she had, there was no way she could have left. She could say whatever she wanted about wanting to make a clean break and letting him move on, but deep down she knew she wouldn't have left if she had gone to see him. He weakened her defenses.

"Let's be break up buddies," Nick said suddenly after five minutes of silence. She looked over at him, studied the lines of his face, the short sandy brown hair, and the thick muscles of his upper body.

"Yeah," she replied. "Why the hell not?" She smiled and settled back against the couch, letting his feet rest against the side of her thigh. She had a feeling she and Nick would become good friends over the course of the op. Undercover forced a bond, but she knew she and Nick would have more than just trust with each other; they would have friendship. She rested her head back against the couch and took a deep breath. The hard work would begin the next day.

Andy was nervous. She and Nick were going to be acting like a couple for the first time when it really counted. They were going to have to be convincing in front of one of the biggest drug lords in the country. She hoped they could pull it off.

He walked in. Nick gently urged her forward with his arm around her back, making it look like a gentle squeeze between lovers rather than the silent code between undercover cop coworkers. Coworkers. Yet they had to put aside their camaraderie and replace it with the sizzling chemistry expected of a couple as young and reckless as they were supposed to be. Nick leaned down and whispered in her ear, his breath warm against her skin, making her hairs stand on end. "You ready?"

She nodded slightly and fixed a huge smile on her face. This needed to go well, if they wanted the rest of their time undercover to go relatively smoothly. Three hours later, Andy "needed to go out and get more dip" and call their handler. She was about to leave when Nick pulled her down and whispered against her mouth, "Make it look real". And then he laid his lips on hers. Of course, she thought. It made sense that they would kiss each other goodbye. What didn't make sense was how much she was enjoying it. His lips were soft and warm, moving against her mouth in a pleasant rhythm she couldn't help but respond to. Her eyelids fluttered shut and she ran her hands up his solid pecs. After what seemed like an hour, but was most likely about thirty seconds, he pulled back and pressed another kiss to the tip of her nose. "Be quick."

Andy left the apartment, dazed. It wasn't that long ago that Sam had ended things. She should still be grieving, not enjoying the sweet kisses of another man. But damn, that had been a good kiss. It was strange, kissing Nick. She was so used to the way Sam's mouth moved, the stubble on his chin, and the feel of his shoulders under her hands. But kissing Nick had been good. It had been really good, in a different way. Sam was rough, Nick was gentle. Sam was dark, Nick was light. They were opposites, but still managed to make her feel ridiculously good. She leaned against the side of the building outside and blew out a breath. Against her will, she felt a smile spreading over her face. He had made her feel good, without the complications Sam always managed to drag into their relationship. There were no rules for Andy and Nick. She was not his training officer, and he was not undercover with Jamie Brennan while she snuck into his room and stayed there all night. So she might as well enjoy the feelings Nick's mouth gave her while she could, then move on and find someone to build a relationship with. Love had burned her twice recently, and she was ready to just have a little fun while she could. Nick was the perfect candidate for that.

In the apartment, Nick was just as dazed as she was. He had not expected to feel anything when he'd kissed Andy, much less… _that_. That rush of feeling he always used to get when he kissed Gail when they were engaged. He hadn't had it as much when he'd started working at 15 Division, but he knew there was still something with Gail because he knew h'd felt it before. But now, with Andy, feeling this way… it opened up a while new world for them and left the friendship part of their relationship to crumble. There was no way he could be friends with her after he'd kissed her and felt like that. He could trust her with his life and know she'd always have his back, but he couldn't be friends with her. As he waited for her to return, he thought about ways he could get to let him in and let him kiss her some more. Off the cameras.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hey, everyone! First of all, I just wanted to say I'm so sorry for the long wait. Normally I'm better about updating at least weekly, but I've been in the woods for the past two weeks with no internet service. But now I'm back, so expect more regular updates. Next, in response to a comment, I know the plot of the first chapter wasn't exactly the plot of the show, but I really just wanted to speed everything along to get the story going. From here on out, the majority of the plot is mine, with a few moments from the show. The only other part of the past plot of the show that will be different will be the circumstances of Jerry's death. Third, thank you all so much for the reviews, follows, and favorites! It makes me so happy. And finally, I know this was a long author's note, but now, read, review, and enjoy as always!**

It was now well into the undercover op. Nick and Andy had pretty much gotten used to the sensation of kissing each other in front of the meth dealers they were working for. They knew something big was going down sometime soon and distraction was pretty much not an option for them.

Andy paced around their apartment. She hadn't heard from Nick since that morning when the "new rules" had gone into place and they'd taken him and his cell phone and kept he from coming with them. She was getting worried. Even if he didn't have his phone, he still knew the number he should call to let her know he was okay. He hadn't done that yet. Looking at the clock, Andy made up her mind. She was going to go look for him.

A half hour later she was breaking into the house of the meth dealer. She yelled a few times and there didn't appear to be anyone there. She walked around back, careful not to make noise as she stepped on the cement tiles on the ground. If they heard her, and knew she was looking for Nick, they would not be happy. And those people unhappy would not be good news for her and Nick. In other words, one or both of them could end up dead. Not noticing anyone outside and not hearing anyone answer her calls, she cracks open the door and steps silently inside, leaving it open behind her. She made sure to keep her steps light but normal, so anyone who might happen to be in the house or walk in wouldn't suspect anything was wrong.

Andy looked around the house, not seeing anything that could lead her to Nick. Until she spotted the laptop sitting on the table. She sat down, first rifling lightly through the papers beside the laptop before carefully opening it. Suddenly, she heard a voice behind her. "Hey, sweetheart." She jumped, holding her hand over her heart, to see Von, one of the meth dealers, standing behind her. His arms rested above his head on a beam in the ceiling, and the thin white shirt he wore rode up at his waist.

She smiled slightly and said, "Oh, it's you. You scared me." He just nodded skeptically, so she went on. "The door was unlocked so I thought I'd just come in and see if I could find Nick. Have you seen him?"

Von stared at her for a minute before stepping forward and dropping his hands. "Yeah, he's down at the beach."

"Good," she said as she stood up. "I was worried."

He nodded at her, stepping closer still. "So you decided to look for him. In my laptop."

She glanced down, then smiled at herself for her silliness. "Nick never gave me your number. I was looking for it."

Von nodded slowly. "Smart man."

She paused cautiously, but nodded. "I'm just going to go look for him. Thank you." She turned around and began making her way back to the door.

"One thing," she heard from behind her, so she turned around, to look at him again. "New rules. Where's your cell phone?" She nodded, relaxing. She patted her pants pockets, feeling the bulge on the back right side, but pretending not to find it. "You know, I left it in my bag outside. I'm just going to go get that."

She turned around to head outside, to do what she had no idea, but thinking on her feet was part of her job description. Her heart beat a little faster as she thought through her options. Before she had left, she'd shoved the gun she and Nick kept under the couch in the back of her waistband. If she needed to, she could still use it on Von, but blowing her cover wasn't an option when they knew the dealers had sped up the process so much there was a new shipment going out that day, when one had gone out the day before as well. They were close to the big bust, and she needed to be there to make it. Both for 15 Division and for herself. She didn't think she could face Sam again without making the bust, without being able to prove to him that she had left to do something good.

A gun hit the back of her head, and she dropped to the floor, unconscious.

The next thing Andy knew, she was in a moving truck, bound and gagged. She took in her surroundings, the plastic lining the walls of the truck and the pile of something in the corner she couldn't quite make out. She carefully stood up, making sure to keep her balance by resting on the side of the truck. Where was Nick? An idea formed in her mind, and she turned, carefully rubbing her backside on the truck, dismayed at the lack of anything in her back pockets. She had no way of contacting Nick or Blackstone… or Sam. It annoyed her that she still thought of him in a time like this, but ancient feelings didn't just disappear. Maybe he had waited for her. Damn it, she should not be thinking this right now! She was in no place to think about her love life. She needed to think about her _life_.

The truck shuddered to a halt, and she stood up her eyes widening. She made her way closer to the back door of the truck as she heard footsteps outside. She readied herself when the door began to lift. As soon as she could, she kicked her foot out and made contact with the hard body outside, which fell to the ground in surprise. "What the hell?"

Nick's voice came back to her and she stood shocked in the back of the truck. "Nick!" She yelled through the piece of cloth over her mouth.

"What is she doing here?" Nick yelled as Von grabbed her arm and dragged her down to the ground.

"Just go inside," Von said. He pulled Andy up by her arm, bringing her along behind him, as they went up a set of stairs outside a warehouse. Once inside, Andy was unbound and gagged and she went willingly into Nick's arms. His big, strong, safe arms. Who needed Sam when she had Nick right here with her, holding her and kissing the top of her head in comfort?

Still holding her close, Nick looked up at Von and PJ, the other man Von was working with. "What is she doing here?" Before he could get an answer, another man walked in the room, talking on his cell phone. Nick and Andy stared at him in confusion, and he nodded at them when he hung up. "Who are you?" Nick inquired, somewhat indignant.

"Wilson Burr," the man said before turning to Von. "We ready?"

"Yep," Von said. "That's her."

"What?" Andy asked. "Who am I?"

"Who is Simon McCowen?" Burr asked, staring directly at Andy.

"I don't know! I've never met him." Andy said. It was only a small lie. She had no idea who he was, but she had met him the night before.

"In town," Burr walked up to her and spoke the words McCowen had made her repeat after him the previous night. "Simon McCowen runs meth. Who is Simon McCowen?"

"I don't know!" Andy yelled, still in Nick's arms.

"What about last night?" Burr said, stepping closer so Andy burrowed still further into Nick's arms.

"She knows who he is but she doesn't _know_ who he is!" Nick said. Andy could feel the heat from him, the comfort he was providing with every breath she took. He was trying to make her feel safe when both of them knew fully well that they were probably both going to die.

"Last night's visit from McCowen seemed rather surprising, don't you think?" Andy and Nick stared back at him blankly. Burr turned sharply to Von. "How long has he been here? He's been good?"

"Six months, and yeah, he's solid," Von responded.

"Good." Burr turned back. "Then we have our answer."

PJ grabbed Andy and shoved her to her knees, holding her arms behind her back. Burr handed Nick a gun, which he held in great confusion. "Shoot her."

"What?" Andy and Nick yelled at the same time.

"No!" Nick said. "I'm not going to kill her. I love her."

"You've been dating what? Four months? And suddenly she's showing up everywhere, sneaking into my house, and asking way too many questions." Von said pointedly.

"She's the leak," Burr said. "Shoot her."

"I'm not!" Nick said. "I'm not going to shoot her!"

"You don't understand." Von pulled out a gun and aimed it at Nick. "It's her or it's both of you."

Nick stared down at Andy. She whimpered as PJ's grip tightened on her. She saw the answer in Nick's eyes before he said anything. "No, Nick, don't do this!" She pleaded with him, trying to show him everything she felt the same way he was showing her the regret he'd have for what he was about to do.

"Look at me," he said, staring into her eyes. "Just look at me." And he pulled the trigger.

Andy winced, but didn't feel the piercing pain of a bullet. Pj released her. "Wow, that was intense."

Burr nodded. "He's good. Finish the job." He pulled out his cell phone and left the room without another word.

"W-What?" Andy asked, utterly confused. She still felt like a bullet was coming her way, despite knowing that the gun Nick had shot at her wasn't loaded. But now there was another _loaded_ gun pointed at her, and this one was in the hands of a meth dealer who wouldn't hesitate to pull the trigger and kill her.

Nick moved, shoving the gun out of Von's hands and pushing him against the wall with a swift kick of his foot. "Andy, now!" He yelled. Her training kicked in, even though the world still seemed surreal to her. She slammed her arms down on PJ's elbows, causing him to release her. She kicked him in the gut and stood, following Nick as he yelled at her, "Andy, let's move!"

They sprinted out of the room, running through the warehouse until they were squatting in a small operating room without windows. They could hear voices behind them, but they were distant. They flattened themselves against the side of the room, both breathing heavily.

"How are you feeling?" Nick asked her.

She glanced over at him, looking at him as if he were crazy. "I'm just trying to catch my breath. Oh maybe I can stop watching my life flash before my eyes!"

"I was keeping our cover!" Nick whispered.

"I don't care from our cover! Screw our cover!" She replied. "I trusted you Nick!"

"I knew the gun wasn't loaded."

"What? How?" Andy blanched for a moment, not appeased but not as angry.

"That little nub on the side of the gun? I couldn't feel it. That meant the gun wasn't loaded. I'm just glad it was a Glock."

"I don't care!" She leaned her head out the window into the larger room of the warehouse and looked around as the voices got slightly louder. She looked over and saw a phone. She grabbed it, seeing a tiny light glowing at the end of the tunnel. She dialed a number and turned back around the window to sit back against the wall next to Nick.

"Who are you calling?" Nick asked, his breath still heavy.

"I don't know, I just dialed," she said. It was pretty much true. She had dialed the number she knew best, not thinking who it was that would pick up the phone on the other end.

"Yeah," his deep voice met her ears and she almost groaned. She should not have called him.

"Sam?" She asked.

"McNally?" He answered. Wow, he almost sounded worried there. "Where are you?"

"I don't know, it's a warehouse somewhere." She glanced around outside again. "I saw a truck with a logo with the letters BTI in a red circle."

The voices outside grew louder and Nick tapped her shoulder. "We gotta go. Andy, we gotta go now!"

"I have to go!" Andy dropped the phone and ran off with Nick. They wove their way through rooms in the empty building and ended up in a loading room. A truck sat with it's door open and the voices behind them grew even louder. "In here!" She pulled him inside and they closed the door, leaning back against it.

They were panting again. Nick turned his head to look at Andy. "You're still mad."

"Of course I'm still mad! I'm going to be mad for a long time!" She looked at him incredulously. There was a beating noise outside the door, and Nick reached over to link their fingers together. "I hate going to bed angry."

"I know," she replied, her voice cracking a bit.

"You ready to fight?" She nodded, looking at him. They separated, facing the truck door and bracing themselves for the fight of their lives. Literally.

The door opened and they were faced with… Sam Swarek. Nick glanced over at Andy, but her eyes were only for Swarek. He swore to himself. She hadn't let Swarek go. Which meant he couldn't have her. The adrenaline pulsing through his veins was warping his emotions, but he didn't care. He wanted her, but he wouldn't push her. And now that they were safe, he couldn't keep her from choosing Swarek. No matter how much it pained him.

"Hey," Andy said breathlessly.

"Hi," Swarek replied. He hadn't even looked at Nick yet. And Nick saw his chances falling away.

Nick and Andy were back at the station. They'd busted the drug ring, and all that was left for them to do was debrief. But before that, they both had business to take care of. They went to see Traci first. "Traci!" Andy said, smiling hugely at her best friend.

"I'm glad you're back," Traci grinned and hugged her best friend in greeting.

"Me too," she said.

"Hey, Nick," Traci looked at him and smiled. Her smile lit up her face. It seemed to him that every woman on the force was gorgeous. Gail, Andy, and Traci. All of them were ridiculously beautiful. He knew he shouldn't be thinking it, but he couldn't seem to get them out of his head. He knew Traci was still dealing with Jerry's death, and he knew that couldn't be easy. In Afghanistan, he'd had to leave behind many people he'd cared for, and it was never easy. He wanted to be there if she needed any help with it. But now was not the time to say anything about it.

"Hey, Traci. I'm just gonna go, but it's nice to see you," he walked away, but stopped outside the room. He knew it was petty and juvenile, but he wanted to know if Andy was going to say anything about him and their time together. And maybe some feelings about him.

"How are you feeling?" Traci asked her.

"I'm good, I'm just… a little overwhelmed, obviously, and um…" Andy's voice trailed off.

Nick could practically hear the smile in Traci's voice when she spoke. "Andy? I think he's in the break room."

"Thanks." He could hear her turning around so he sped off down the hall. He had his answer now. She wanted Swarek back and he was out of luck. But there was someone else he wanted to see.

Nick found Gail outside the locker rooms. She spotted him and he steps slowed. "Nick?" She looked at him uncertainly.

"Hey," he gave her a half smile. He knew Andy was going to be back with Swarek, and he knew he still had feelings for Gail. So he had nothing to keep him from going back to her. He'd though about her on a daily basis while they were on their task force. He was hoping, now that they were back, he wouldn't think about Andy as much. He planned on blaming his feelings for her on their close proximity and danger. Every romance novel was based on that, anyway.

Gail stepped closer to him, looking at him in wonder. The corner of his mouth lifted in a half smile as she stopped right in front of him. She dropped her bag… and punched him in the eye.

He stepped back, sputtering. He moved back even more as she hugged him with all her might. "God, I missed you."

He smiled and placed a kiss on her hair. "I missed you, too."

"So," Marlo Cruz looked up at Sam as they stood sipping coffee in the break room. "McNally's back."

"Yep," Sam nodded. His face remained passive, but there were clearly some unresolved feelings underneath it.

"What does that mean?" She looked up at him, her face not showing any emotion either. But her voice held a note of apprehension.

"Nothing," he shook his head, looking truly sincere.

A slight smile lifted the corners of her mouth. "Okay." He smiled at her and leaned down to kiss her soundly on the mouth. She pulled back a moment later, smiling at him. "I'll see you tonight."

She turned and walked out the room. Sam watched her go, then faced forward again to finish his coffee, and came face to face with Andy McNally. She nodded, smiled bitterly, and walked out the door.

Andy walked outside after the debrief. She felt rubbed raw. It had been one hell of a day. First, Nick had shot a gun at her and she'd seen her life flash before her eyes repeatedly. Then, they'd busted a meth ring and finally, she'd found out the ex she was still in love with was in a new relationship. And apparently he was very happy in it. So happy, in fact, that he didn't have any feelings left for her anymore. It was awesome to love someone who didn't love her back.

"Andy." Great. Now she had to face him and pretend that him dating a different cop didn't bother her at all.

She turned around and looked at him. "Hey, Sam. What's going on?"

"I just wanted to say…" he trailed off, searching her face. There was a pregnant pause between them, and both of them knew in that instant that she was the one who hadn't moved on. "I wanted to say good job. You guys did really well."

"Yeah, um," she looked up at him, shaking off her feeling of self-pity. "Thanks. Oh, and really good job on making detective."

"Thanks." He smiled his charming smile at her and she forced herself not to melt the way she always used to. She no longer had that right. "I hate wearing the uniforms in the summer. It's really hot, and the belts are way high."

"Yeah," she nodded. "Well, um, good night… Sam."

"Night, McNally." So she was just back to McNally with him. Just McNally. Awesome. She felt the wall closing on their friendship as well as their relationship.

She began walking back to her car, but she had a prickling feeling at the nape of her neck. After three years in the line of duty for her, she knew it was her gut telling her something. In this case, she knew she needed to know something. "Sam?" She turned around to face him as he paused in loading his back into the back of his car. "Why her?"

"She's…" He dropped his bag and rubbed his hand across his eyes. "Everything is simple with her. No complicated feelings or circumstances. Honestly?" He looked up and met her gaze, holding it. "She's not you."

Andy stared back for a minute, then finally nodded. "Okay." She turned back around and finished walking to her car. Marlo was not her. That was the information she needed. But it was sure as hell not the information she wanted. Marlo was not Andy, and that was why Sam had chosen her.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Hey, everyone! I promised you quicker updates, so here's the next chapter. Granted, this update was so much faster because this chapter is shorter, but hey, I tried. Don't worry though, I have the whole story mapped out already and there's plenty of time left for everyone to get their fill of McCollins, McSwarek, and anyone out there who's holding out for Luke, I promise, you won't have to wait that much longer. Okay, then, as always, read, review, and enjoy! And seriously, finding out that someone has reviewed, followed, or favorites makes my day so much brighter! But I mainly just love knowing that people are reading. So keep it up and enjoy!**

"Parade room, everyone, five minutes!" Frank shouted as he walked through the division.

Andy rolled her eyes, turning in her chair to face Traci. "I can't take this anymore, Trace. He's ridiculous. It's like he's taunting me. He keeps pairing me with Marlo and it's driving me crazy!"

Traci looked at her with a mix of concern and amusement. "You know, you shouldn't be taking this so hard. You did stand him up at the Penny."

Andy stared at her friend, aghast. "Oh, you can not take his side on this!"

"I'm not!" Traci said, holding her hands up. "I'm just saying, if I had a choice between Swarek, as hot as he is, and Collins, I'd choose Collins."

"What?" Andy blustered. "I don't have a voice between them. Nick doesn't even like me and Sam has a new girlfriend. I'm just chopped liver to both of them. Besides, aren't Nick and Gail back together?"

"Hell if I know," Traci responded. "I don't pay attention to the whole relationship gossip chain in the office." Andy shot her a disbelieving glance. "Okay, okay, fine. Yes, they are back together. But, c'mon, don't tell me you haven't noticed the way he looks at you. He likes you. A lot more than he likes Gail, too."

Andy eyebrows shot up. "Okay, now you're just shitting me. Neither of them has feelings for me, and I'm just screwed because I have to see both of them every day and know they chose someone else over me."

Traci watched her in silence for a moment, contemplating her response. "So, you have feelings for both of them."

"Yeah, I do," Andy replied after a long pause. "I don't know when I'll get over Sam. But Nick… those feelings are new. I don't know, when I was in the warehouse and Nick pulled the trigger on me, it felt like… a bigger betrayal than it would have been if it had been if it were just someone I trusted rather than someone I actually thought I could have something with. Sometimes, when we were acting, it felt real."

"How real?" Traci asked, genuinely concerned for her friend. She didn't know how much more wear and tear Andy's heart could take. She didn't want to see her get hurt. More than she already had, at least. Callaghan had done a number on her, and Swarek certainly hadn't helped. If Andy got burned by another man, Traci was going to beat someone up.

"I felt like I was supposed to be feeling playing his girlfriend," she said, hanging her head. She knew getting too close to her cover was a bad idea, but someone had once told her 'create a character and stick to it'. So it wasn't like she could change anything. But now that they were back to their normal lives, she had to let the feelings go. She had no right to him anymore, no right to admire the muscles of his back as he got dressed in the morning, or smell the cologne clinging to the side of his neck as they hugged, and definitely no right to kiss him anymore. No matter how much she wanted to…

"You know you have to let this go, right?" Traci watched her friend, the measure of amusement gone from her face and call that was left with concern. "I mean, you can't keep up with these feelings for him. At the very least, Gail will rip you a new one."

Andy opened her mouth to respond, not entirely sure what she was going to say. But Sam didn't give her the chance as he walked through the room yelling, "Nash! McNally! Parade room, now!" She rolled her eyes, twirling her chair around to stand up. "He's making my life hell."

Traci laughed as they walked into the Parade room. "He's been good to me since he made detective, but he has seemed to be more hands on with Cruz since you got back. Seems to me he's trying to make you jealous."

Andy laughed derisively. "Yeah, well, it's working." They sat down together at a table near the front. She looked around as she sat down, taking in Marlo sitting in the back, the back of her chair in between Sam's knees. Nick and Gail sat next to each other across the room, their hands not visible but clearly touching under the table. Oliver took his seat behind Nick and Gail, and slapped the back of Nick's head when he leaned over to say something in Gail's ear. "Not in the office, lover boy." Traci snorted out a laugh and Andy continued her perusal. Dov Epstein and Chris Dias, two of the other members of Andy's rookie class, were sitting at the table in front of Andy and Traci. Neither of them looked particularly happy, but Dov looked downright sad. He kept glancing over whenever Nick or Gail said anything. Andy almost wanted to laugh. He looked like a lovesick puppy. Chloe Price, the new rookie, sat in front of Nick and Gail, across from Dov and Chris. She sat alone, and flipped her hair every time Dov shot a glance over. Seemed there was another office romance afoot. But this one could be pretty much one-sided.

"Okay, everybody." Frank's voice snapped her out of her daze. "No new leads on Detective Barber's death, but we're bringing in someone new to work the case. For now, we're roaming the streets. It's a full moon out, everybody, and you know what that means. Bring on the crazies. People may not turn into wolves, but the moon affects them. Expect to see a rise in the crime rate. And that means it's the perfect time to bring our numbers up. Speed traps work well for that, but today, with traffic flow normal, we're patrolling. Keep your eyes peeled for anything. People get bold this time of month. You know the drill. Car assignments are on the board. Protect, serve, and be prepared for some crazy shit." He tapped his desk and stepped to the side. Everyone stood up to look at the board.

Andy wanted to punch a wall. Marlo was riding with Chloe, and she was stuck with Nick. Another day of torture awaited her. _Just ten more hours_, she thought to herself. It had become her motto since her return to regular division work. She turned around to see nick smile his infuriatingly adorable smile at her. "Check it out, McNally, we're partners again."

"Let's go," she said as she brushed past him, not sure that her motto would be enough to get her though her next shift.

Nick wasn't sure what to think of Andy's behavior that morning. So far in the day, nothing particularly exciting had happened, just two arrests for the worst ever executed attempted robbery of a drug store, so he'd had far too much time to think of the possible reasons for her sudden lack of Andy-ness. She'd been cool and distant all morning, not the usual smart and funny Andy he was used to. Something was obviously wrong, he just couldn't figure out if he'd done something or if it was someone else. He was fairly certain it was him, because she'd been talking it up with Traci earlier that day.

"I have a question," Andy said suddenly. Whatever she wanted, he was not about to turn down any form of conversation with her. The complete silence that had settled over the car in their first four hours of the shift made him think his vocal chords might not work right when he got back to civilization that actually wanted him to use his words.

"What's up?" He asked.

"This full moon," she said, facing the road curiously. "Can it make me more bitchy or short tempered than usual?"

"Um…" He glanced over again. He was trying to read her, but it wasn't going as well as he'd hoped. He wasn't sure what she was talking about at all. Normally he could follow her odd conversational tangents, but this one seemed to spring up from nowhere. But it was clearly the reason she was being so quiet, so he might as well play along and figure out what was up. "I honestly have no clue. I do know it messes with our hormone levels, specifically adrenaline, making us more daring and less aware of the consequences of our actions than we usually would me. Why? What's this about?"

"Do you think I'm overreacting about the whole Sam and Marlo thing because of the moon?" _Ahh_. It made sense now. She was worried about Sam again. Even after she knew the guy had chosen someone else over her, for reasons Nick could never fathom, she was still pining after him. He tried to regulate his temper, wishing he could lean over and make her see that there was someone so much better for her out there, but knowing he couldn't.

"I don't think the moon has anything to do with that," he said, clamming up his inner tirade. "I think you're still feeling raw about what he did to you, with him not waiting for you or anything, and I think it's setting you on edge. I thin you're entitled to your feelings and I think Sam's an ass for constantly rubbing her in your face."

"So I'm not just imagining that?" She glanced at him earnestly before returning her eyes to the road. "Like it's not just me being jealous, he really is showing her off more than he needs to, right?"

"Yeah," he agreed, trying to keep his sigh in. He was tired of hearing about her feelings for Sam. He would do anything for her at the drop of a hat, and he wasn't entirely sure the same could be said about Gail, despite the fact they were currently in a relationship. He knew he shouldn't play with her emotions that way, but he knew if he couldn't have Andy, his feelings for Gail would be enough. And maybe he was just as much of a douchebag as Sam was, but he preferred not to think about Sam because it made him want to punch a hole in a wall.

"So what do I do?" Oh, he was so not having this conversation. He could not handle it.

"I think you should… honestly, I think you should forget about him." He winced to himself as he could feel her icy stare on his profile. "I'm just saying, I think he's an ass for what he did to you, and I don't think he's going to realize that anytime soon. So I think you should move on and find someone else. If you're really vindictive, make him jealous with said new guy." He had no idea why he was saying any of this. He didn't want her with Sam, but he didn't want her with anyone else, either. Which he was pretty much encouraging her to do.

"Huh." She didn't sound as pissed off as he expected her to be. That was god news for him, right?

"Hey, I heard there's a bet going," Dov sidled up to Frank when things were slow in booking that day.

Frank lifted his eyes from the paper her was reading but didn't look up at the younger man. "You may have heard right. Why do you ask?"

"I want in," Dov said.

"Me too," Chris spoke up from behind them. Frank raised his eyebrows as he took in the young men begging for his attention like little dogs.

"Alright," he said. "What's your wager?"

"I say six months," Chris said, pulling a hundred dollars out of his pocket. Frank frowned at him as he took it, knowing his officers weren't supposed to be carrying personal belongings or anything more than small bills on the job.

"That's not long enough," Dov argued, despite the fact that his friend had already placed his bet. "She still has a broken heart. She's not going to take him back until her heart has healed and she's dated someone else. Besides, he has Cruz now, and he's using her to rub in Andy's face, and he's not going to give up that power over her any time soon. I'll say a year until they're back together." He looked innocently up at Frank, who rolled his eyes. "Just pay up, Epstein." Dov smiled slightly and dug his bet out of his pocket as well.

"Hey, it's not like we do this when we work the streets," Chris said, noting Frank's look of disapproval. "We have more sense than that. And he would give up that power if he knew he could get her back," Chris turned around to face Dov again. "He's just dating her because she's holding Andy's place. Haven't you noticed they look ridiculously similar?"

"Well, sure, but that's part of why he chose her," Dov argued.

"Oh, for God's sake," Frank shoved the money in his pocket and moved to leave the conversation before it became even more feminine and juvenile than it already was.

"Can I make a wager?" All three men turned around to see Traci standing with Gail behind them, both women standing with their hips cocked and arms crossed over their chests.

"You two want in?" Frank asked with a measure of incredulity.

"Betting on Andy's love life?" Gail snorted. "Hell yeah, I want in. Analyzing why men don't want to be with her is one of my favorite pastimes."

Chris stared at her, shaking his head. "How does Nick stand you?"

She smiled overly sweetly. "You did. Figure it out."

"I swear, you've gotten meaner since we broke up." Chris smiled to himself. "Hey, now that I think of it, I might have had something to do with this."

She laughed condescendingly. "Don't flatter yourself."

He opened his mouth to respond but Traci held up her hand. "I'm betting they're back together by the end of Sam's next case."

"Hey, that's not fair!" Dov exclaimed. "That could be over in two weeks or two years. Narrow it down."

"Nope, that's my bet." She raised her eyebrows at Frank, knowing he had the final word on the matter.

"Ease off, Epstein, her bet's valid," he said, taking the money Traci held out. "But if the case goes cold and he picks up a new one before it's solved, you're out."

She nodded. "Okay."

"What's your bet, Peck?" Frank turned to the other woman, who was still silently seething at Chris.

"I'm betting they're back together in four months," Gail said, handing over the hundred dollars required for the bet.

"Everyone okay?" Frank asked, looking around at his officers. Their rookie class had been more trouble than any other rookie class in 15 Division history. Between them all, they'd burned more areas, undercover cops, and surveillance vans than any other group of cops he knew. They'd interfered in dispatch more time than he could count, and broken more rules than he could think of. But they were some of the best cops he knew, and if he had the choice between letting one of them go or standing behind one of them, he'd choose to fight for them. When he saw the nods from the four young cops, he narrowed his eyes. "Back to work. Nash, take Peck, Dias, and Epstein here to be briefed by the detective working the Barber case."

"Sir, I'm not sure I'm the best person-," she stopped talking when Frank held up his left hand.

"You're relationship with Detective Barber, while hindering your ability to be objective during the investigation of his death, can only help us at this point. We have no leads whatsoever. Now take your rookie buddies and let the knew point man brief you on his plan."

Traci stood silently for a moment before nodding and waving for Chris, Dov, and Gail to follow her to the back of the station.

"Very good job today," Frank said to Andy and Nick at the end of that shift. "Nearly thirty arrests. That's impressive. You two and one other pair were incredibly helpful in bringing our numbers up. 15 Division hasn't had very much good press recently, and we needed this to help out. Good job, McNally, Collins."

Nick nodded and turned to exit Frank's office, but stopped when he heard the next words out of Andy's mouth. "Who were they?"

"Excuse me?" Frank asked in confusion.

"The other pair," Andy fidgeted slightly. "Who were they?"

Nick walked slowly closer to her, taking hold of her shoulders and leaning down to whisper in her ear. "Don't do this to yourself, Andy. Don't make yourself think about it."

"Cruz and Price," Frank answered, looking back down at his paperwork and dismissing them. Andy's fists clenched, but she let herself be lead out of the office. Cruz had to be a spectacular cop to put up with Chloe all day and still manage to make nearly thirty arrests.

"How is she so much better than me?" Andy asked him as he led her by her shoulders through the office.

"She's not, now stop beating yourself up about this." He stopped her and turned her around, pushing her back against one of the walls. It was late at night, so barely any other cops were still there. Andy and Nick themselves would be halfway home if Frank hadn't requested to see them after the end of their shift.

Nick let his guard down as he watched her. Her face was always so expressive, her eyes so soulful. He could easily see himself falling for her, and not just because of her beautiful face. Everything about her, her personality, her work ethic, her morals, it all appealed to him. He had loved Gail once. He knew he didn't anymore. He wasn't even sure he had when he'd first come to 15 Division and they'd gotten back together.

"Andy," he whispered, leaning down to wipe the single tear that fell gently from her left eye. "He's not worth it." She glanced up into his eyes, but couldn't seem to look away after. He felt the connection pull between them and decided this was his moment. Not breaking eye contact, he leaned down, ready to connect their mouths in their first non-cover kiss.

"There you guys are." They both bolted upright at the sound of Chris's voice beside them.

"Yeah, just… cheering Andy up," Nick said, holding his hands behind his head and as far away from Andy as he could get them.

"Rough shift," she said, keeping her voice as even as she could.

"Well then you might want to leave in the next five minutes or so," Chris said, bending backward to look down the hallway behind him.

"Too late," Traci hissed to him as he stood up quickly to avoid being hit by her.

"What?" Andy looked between them in confusion. "Trace, what's going on?"

"Andy, I need to tell you something."

But she was already distracted, her mouth hanging open as she looked past Traci to watch the detective taking over the investigation of Jerry's death walking out of the division. His blond hair was brushed back the way it always had been, and his jeans seems to fit his hips as if nearly two years hadn't gone by.

"That's what I needed to talk to you about," Traci said hesitantly, following her line of sight. "Luke's back, and he's taking over Jerry's murder case."


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Hey, everyone! I just want to start by saying this chapter is a bit of a filler. There's not much to it, but it sets up the crime part of the rest of the story, so it does serve a purpose, I promise. Next, I really want to thank everyone for their awesome reviews. I love hearing about your thoughts on the story. And just a warning, this might be my last post for a week or so because I'm going on vacation, but if I can get to a place with reliable wifi, I promise I'll upload a chapter. Now, as always, read review and enjoy!**

"Okay people, I know this isn't exactly what you wanted for your Friday night," Frank addressed the small group of officers in front of him. "But the detectives needed some helping hands, and you guys are my best. The sooner you get this done, the sooner you can go home. And hey, the overtime pay isn't bad either. So, serve, protect, and figure out what the hell is going on. Car assignments are on the board." He nodded and left them to look at the board.

Andy stood to take in the list of three cars on the board: Dov and Chris, Nick and Gail, and her and… Marlo. Of course.

"Ready, rook?" She heard from behind her, and turned to stare at Marlo. The woman who had taken her place. She had known working on a Friday night couldn't be a good thing, but now she knew it would be literally hell. She knew she couldn't complete with Marlo, and at that point, she was ready to stop trying.

"Yeah," Andy sighed, more than ready to get it over with. She knew, even though she had made a fairly conscious decision to back off and try not to let Sam and Marlo's relationship get to her, she and Marlo were not going to get along. They headed out of the room to squad car 1519. Of course. It had to be the car she and Sam had used during their partnership.

Back in the Parade Room, Nick and Gail found their names next to each other on the board. Gail turned to him with a canary-eating cat grin. "Well, _honey_," she purred. "Looks like our good Staff Sergeant Best thinks we make a good team. What do you say we… take a detour?"

Nick laughed incredulously. "Gail, we're on the way to help the detectives with a homicide. Besides, we can do that when we get home." He'd recently asked Gail to move in with him, and, to his surprise, she'd actually said yes. "C'mon, babe, we're cops. We can't get in the way of finding a killer because we can't control our hormones."

Gail sighed and rolled her eyes. "Fine. But I'm driving." Nick nodded, relinquishing the keys to car 1505. As much as he used to like Gail taking charge, now all h emanated was someone he could joke around with, someone who would watch old movies with him late at night. Someone like Andy.

"Let's go, babe," she said, pulling him along behind her.

"Rock paper scissors for driving privileges?" Dov turned to his best friend when they realized they were paired together for the drive to the crime scene. Dov knew Frank had been a little sly with his choice of pairings for this Friday night. Pairing Andy with Marlo was devious at best, and there was no way he'd done it unintentionally.

"Yeah, sure," Chris said. Both of them were having the same thought about Frank's… interesting pairing. And pairing Nick and Gail together was also a little bit sneaky. No one was missing the looks that were being passed between Andy and Nick. If there were to be another bet going, it would have to be when Nick and Gail would break up, and Chris would gladly place his wager in the next two weeks.

"Rock, paper, scissors," Dov and Chris said simultaneously, pounding their fists lightly against the table on each word. At the word, "shoot" Dov held up his fist with his first two fingers straight and apart in a 'scissor' and Chris held his fist out in a 'rock'.

"Rock beats scissors, I'm driving," Chris said smugly, plucking the keys to car 1517 from Dov's slack fingers.

"How did you do that?" Dov asked, shocked, as he followed Chris down the hall to the cars. "I always win at rock paper scissors."

"Did you know that 86% of people choose scissors as their first move in rock paper scissors?" Chris asked mildly as he climbed into the driver's seat. Dov groaned, sitting down on the passenger's side.

"What do we have here?" Marlo asked as she stepped out the car at a small convenience store at the corner of two cross streets. A small crowd was already beginning to gather behind the barricade. Andy climbed out behind her and made her way over to where Sam and Traci stood, notebooks out.

"Double homicide," Luke moved out of the shadow of the store and into the light, not looking up from his notebook. "Haven't been able to identify the vics yet. One of them was stabbed multiple times in the legs, chest, and face. The slashes are obscuring some of the facial features, making it much harder to figure out her identity. The other victim has burn marks down the whole right side of the body, and across the entire face. My bet would be that someone didn't want anyone to figure out who these two bodies belonged to."

"There's broken glass on the inside of the store, not the outside," Sam chimed in. "Looks like someone broke in, which makes no sense because this is a 24 hour store. No one else dead, no money or merchandise missing. You got anything else to add, Nash?" He turned and looked at Traci.

She shook her head. "Nope, that seems to be it. Right now, we mostly need you all," she looked around at Marlo, Andy, Nick, Gail, Dov, and Chris assembled in front of her, "to take statement, talk to witnesses, and secure the perimeter. Once we have everything here at the crime scene, you can turn in your notes to sand you're free to go home. If anyone doesn't have any plans this weekend, though, we could always use the extra help." She raised her eyebrows but the cops lined up in front of her scoffed good-naturedly.

"Sorry, Trace, but our overtime doesn't pay _that_ well," Dov said.

"Okay, then," Luke said, clearly uncomfortable with the pleasant banter of the younger cops. "Collins and Epstein, you're with me. Dias and Peck, you two can head off with Nash. And McNally and Cruz, you're with Swarek." Andy sent a murderous glance at Traci, who shrugged helplessly. "We're splitting up, mostly taking statements, but if the detective you're with asks you to do something else, you do it. Because our overtime doesn't pay nearly as well as yours does." He nodded, and Nick and Dov followed him off.

Andy nodded, resigning herself to her fate and following Sam and Marlo to the edge of the crime scene.

"Cruz, you're taking those people over there," Sam pointed to the group of four or five people being treated by the paramedics. "It looks like it's just cuts and bruises from broken glass, but take their statements and a list of any injuries. Anything can help us at this point." Marlo nodded and began to head off.

"McNally." Sam's voice nearly made Andy shudder. She wasn't sure how much more of this she could take. "You're taking the perimeter. Make sure no one leaves and make sure no one gets to close to the rest of us."

Her internal voice began an angry rant about the fact that she was in charge of the fucking _perimeter_, but outwardly she nodded. Her jaw was clenched tight, but she moved back to look around at the people she was in charge of. She decided to take note of the people that were there, knowing not all of them were going to be just innocent bystanders who were curious about the abnormal break in. She surveyed the people at the barrier.

As soon as she started to do her job, her annoyance at Sam and Marlo resumed. She knew if someone wanted to leave the scene that was past the barrier, she could do nothing to stop them. Sam had put her in charge of this area because he didn't want her around and he didn't think she was a good enough cop to do any real work. Even as she thought it, she knew it wasn't true. He had probably just asked Marlo to take the statements because she was his girlfriend and he wanted to spend more time with her, unfair as that was.

She shook her head to clear it. She needed to focus on her job. Leave it to Sam to ruin her job again when they weren't even dating anymore. He wrecked havoc on her entire life when they were dating and apparently that hadn't stopped when they broke up. Andy took a mental deep breath. She needed to stop.

She turned to the people in front of her. There weren't very many of them, maybe ten or fifteen, but then again, it was nearly 1:30 in the morning. Not many people would be out at 1:30 on a Friday night. Or at least they would be in a club, not wandering the streets of Toronto. She started on the right, scanning the faces and body language of each person in turn.

There was a woman with light, mousy brown hair in a tattered gray sweater and ratty jeans. She had a small nose, pointed up at the end, pale blue-gray eyes and a wide, thin mouth. Andy knew pictures had been taken of the crime scene, but her mental picture of the witnesses outside the barrier was the only one that existed. She moved on to the person to the left of the woman. There was a young boy, no older than eleven or twelve, dressed in a large varsity jacket, probably from a father or older brother, and low slung jeans. They weren't in a wealthy part of town, so the worn in condition of the majority of their clothes made sense. The boy had short, wavy strawberry blonde hair and an impish face with the darkest, deepest blue eyes Andy had ever seen. Next to him stood a tall, wiry man with glasses and a tan belted trench coat. His dark brown hair was balding at the top and shrewd amber yes stared back out from behind the glass lenses. He had a sharp, hawkish nose and extremely sallow skin. He didn't look like he was high income, but he certainly didn't come from the poverty the others clearly came from. Andy made a mental note to try and check the man against facial recognition later that night.

In front of him was a teenage girl and boy, holding hands. The girl had her face buried against his shoulder, so Andy couldn't clearly see her whole face, but she had brilliant, probably bottle blond hair, and clear, clover green eyes. Her full mouth was turned down at the corners, and her eyes appeared to be watering. She wore a loose brown cardigan and faded denim shorts. Her boyfriend had deep, chocolate skin with soulful brown eyes. He had his muscular arms wrapped around the girl, and he placed a soft kiss on the top of her hair. They appeared to come from the small suburban neighborhood a few blocks over. Next to them was an old woman with blue gray hair and clear hazel eyes. Her wrinkled face, for some reason, sent shivers down Andy's spine. Something about her face was just creepy to her. She thought about looking up the woman, too. Sure, she wasn't going to be a likely suspect in a break in and double homicide, but sometimes the unlikely ones were the ones they had to look for.

There was a man wearing new jeans, not classy or anything, but new. He had a nondescript face, medium brown hair, medium brown eyes, clean shaven. Nothing stood out about him. He wasn't particularly tall or muscular, and his clothes were incredibly average. His thumbs were tucked into the pockets of his tan jacket and his toe was tapping on the ground. His body language suggested he was nervous, but his eyes weren't shifting and he wasn't making any move to leave. Andy assumed he had home problems and was watching the scene unfold to pass the time before he had to return and face them. The last people, at the far left of the crowd, were a mother and her three children. The mother had fiery red hair and pale skin spattered with freckles. Her mouth was turned down in a sad frown, probably mourning the two dead inside the store. The children were playing with each other, one of them a taller, thin boy with dark, almost black hair and deep, never-ending eyes. He smiled down at a small girl with fine blond hair and soft blue eyes who stood a full head and a half shorter than him. And there was a smaller boy clinging to the older one's hand, this one with soft orange curls that matched his mother's and a wide smile when he looked at his older siblings.

Andy was satisfied with herself for focusing long enough on her work to get the task she was assigned done. Sam couldn't get in her way when she put her mind to something. Just when she was feeling her best for completing her task, Marlo walked over. "Okay, McNally, Sam wanted me to tell you to get them out of here. We're going to move the bodies."

Andy almost growled. She knew she'd decided to let go of her animosity towards Sam and Marlo, but why the hell couldn't he just tell her that himself? "Sorry, Cruz, but I'm going to need Swarek to tell me that himself. I'm trying to go more by the book now than I used to. I don't need any more stress in my life right now, and having Staff Sergeant Best pull me aside or suspend me again would lead to stress."

Marlo narrowed her eyes at the other woman, but nodded. "Okay, I'll let him know."

"Collins, I thought I told you to help the sketch artist get a rough draft of the killer," Luke said in an agitated tone when Nick returned to him empty-handed.

"I tried, sir," Nick replied, not showing any emotion. Internally, however, he was seething. Working with Andy's ex was putting a strain on him. Working with Swarek was hard enough, but now he had to work with both of her exes on the force, and he knew he couldn't compete with either of them. He really needed to stop thinking about this. He had Gail, he should be satisfied with that.

"You tried?" The annoyed tone set Nick instantly on edge again. He could try all he wanted, but there was no way he could stop thinking about Andy that way. His feelings for her hadn't diminished like he wished they would. They had grown since their time undercover, and it didn't look like it was going to stop any time soon.

"Yes, sir, I tried," he said patiently. "The cashier was knocked unconscious and he has a bit of post traumatic amnesia. He doesn't remember who knocked him out, let alone who killed those two people."

"Callaghan," Sam said as he walked into the ruins of the store. "I'm going to let McNally and Cruz go home."

"You're _what_?" Luke turned on Sam, outrage. "We aren't done!"

"They are," Sam said calmly. He knew Luke had something to prove, both to 15 Division and to Andy, and he couldn't help but want to rub the fact that Andy had chosen him in Luke's face. Just like he couldn't help but rub Marlo in Andy's face. He knew it was wrong, and he truly loved Andy more than anything in the world, but she had hurt him. And his natural instinct was to hurt her back for what she did to him. "They've done what they needed to do, and now they should be allowed to go home."

Luke stared at Sam for a charged moment, neither one wanting to back down first. Finally, Luke nodded. "Alright, fine. They can all go home. Make sure they pass us their notes and tell them to have a good night."

Sam narrowed his eyes, but nodded and walked off. Luke turned to Nick. "Okay, Collins, you and Epstein can go. But next time, try a little harder to get the information. I'll take a crack at the cashier tomorrow."

Nick rolled his eyes internally. He knew Callaghan wasn't going to get anything more out of the cashier than he had, but he let him have it. The other man looked like he needed a win. "Good night, sir."

Luke exited the convenience store behind Nick, but both stopped short as they took in the scene in front of them. Marlo was standing by car 1519, but Sam was hugging a woman behind the barrier and dragging Andy over by the hand. Both men watched Andy and Sam's joined hands as they smiled at the woman with the three children on the other side of the barrier. They were joined by Marlo as the three of them nonchalantly made their way over to stand by Traci.

"Hey, Nash," Luke said, leaning against a railing next to her and lifting his chin in Sam and Andy's direction. "Who is that?"

"The woman?" Traci asked. "It's Sam's sister, Sarah."


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Hey, everyone, sorry for the long wait between updates again. Apparently, the internet on cruise ships costs money and there is no 4G in the middle of the ocean. But I've been working on this the whole week, waiting to post it for you guys when I got back. So, as always, read, review, and enjoy!**

Andy looked at the computer screen, confused. How was it possible that all the work she'd done at the crime scene the other night was useless? Gail leaned her head on the half wall next to the desk Andy was sitting at, smirking. "Trouble in paradise?"

Andy shot a glare up at Gail. "You know, you'd have a lot more friends if you were decent to people."

"Mmmmm, yeah, I probably would. Then again, I'd actually have to work and be nice to people, so…. yeah, that's not happening." She smiled her usual smile and tilted her head. "So, what's really going on?"

"Nothing," Andy muttered. "I did all that work at the crime scene, went through an hour and a half of Sam's special hell, and it was all for nothing."

"What do you mean?" Gail's forehead creased in confusion.

"None of them are in our databases. I ran all the fingerprints we found on the barrier, and none of them match anything we have in the database. Nothing. Not a single person there had any record at all, even driving tickets." She shook her head. "How is that possible?"

Gail shrugged. "I don't know. But that's probably why Sam had you on the perimeter."

"What?" Andy's defenses immediately rose.

"He knew you were the best at figuring out how the puzzle pieces with the weird edges fit together," Gail said as if it were obvious. "Why? What'd you think I meant?"

"Nothing," Andy said quietly, almost to herself. Gail shrugged and walked away, cool as always. Andy knew her frustration was mostly coming from Sam and Marlo, but it was true that the pieces didn't fit together. How was it possible, that out of ten to fifteen people, none of them had a criminal record? They were all completely clean, which didn't make any sense at all.

"Hey, McNally." Frank's voice reached her from across the room. She looked up from her work and turned to face him. "Take Collins. There was a break in on Westmoreland Street. Everyone else is at the fire on Church. Two of the rooks can take over the desk work for the day."

She nodded. "Yes, sir." Chloe came over for to take over her work when she heard Frank's announcement. "Look into the families of all of these names." Andy indicated the list of the witnesses she'd found. Process of elimination from their descriptions and body language had helped her narrow it down to a set of names. "Write down everything you find, any charges filed against these people or their families. Don't do anything to find them, just tell me what you know when I get back." She said the last bit in a warning tone. Chloe was known to do rash, impulsive things and ignore protocol, and Andy did not need her screwing with her work. If she got the busy work from Sam, she'd do as good as she damn well could.

"Yes, of course." Chloe shot her an innocent smile. But Andy knew she was anything but innocent. Everyone knew about her encounter with Dov the night he broke his celibacy oath. Andy nodded, taking her on her word. She didn't have time to babysit the impetuous rookie, and she was hoping against hope that nearly two months on the force would have taught her she couldn't do everything she wanted.

Andy made her way to booking to grab Nick. Just thinking Nick's name made her feel tingly inside. She knew it was ridiculous to have these feelings about him, but she had been totally ready for him to kiss her when they'd been against the wall a few nights before. He had Gail, he didn't feel anything for her. And yet she still felt that tingling sensation whenever the thought of him crossed her mind.

"Collins, let's go," she said as she waled by the door of booking. "The rooks are taking over. We got a break in and all street units are at the fire. They need us now." She heard him stand up and walk behind her out to the squad car.

They arrived at the scene roughly fifteen minutes later. As Nick approached the woman at the front door, Andy sat in the car in shock. The girl who answered the door was the blonde haired, blue eyed girl from the night this be a coincidence?

The break in only got more complicated as the night wore on. Andy often wondered to herself how she got stuck working overtime both Friday and Saturday night of the same week,but then she reminded herself she had absolutely nothing better to do with her life. She had no boyfriend, despite the current situation with three men at work, she had no pets, and her best friend was spending all her off time mourning the death of the man she loved and spending time with her young son.

The girl who answered the door, Callie Brown according to her statement and Andy's personal list of suspects, and her boyfriend, Evan Rossdale, also according to both his statement and Andy's list, were in the large townhouse alone while Callie's parents were at dinner. Evan had been the boy Andy had seen at the crime scene the night before with Callie. And then the most shocking part of the case: when Andy had walked into the house behind Nick and Callie, she'd seen Evan pinning the nondescript man, Andy was pretty sure his name was Bob Smith, to the floor.

"Did you take his statement?" Andy whispered to Nick later that night. Behind them, Callie was wrapped in Evan's arms again and Bob was sitting in the chair next to the couch, handcuffed with his arms behind his back.

"Yeah," Nick nodded. He paused, taking in Andy's expression. She looked perturbed, and he wanted to make it better. "What is it?"

"All three of these people were at the scene of the break in last night," Andy began. "I was in charge of the perimeter, and I remember seeing all three of them. I did some background searches this morning, based on the people I saw and the prints we found on the barriers and nothing turned up. For anyone. What are the odds of no prints turning up for any of fifteen people? And then having one of the people break in to another of the people's houses the next day? And this guy, Bob, he didn't fumble. The wiggling of the bar in the door was very precise; he's done this before. If he had, his prints would have turned up in the system when I searched his name or shown up when I ran the fingerprints. So why didn't they?"

Nick nodded, narrowing his eyes. "And if his prints didn't show up and no charges are listed under his name, why couldn't the same be true for anyone else that was there outside that perimeter? We can't trust a damn thing we found there."

"Yeah," she said, deflating. She would have to tell Sam that she couldn't even reliably control the perimeter. Then again, if she told him about the strange circumstances of the information she found, maybe he wouldn't be so upset. _Yeah right_, she snorted to herself. Sam wouldn't be happy with her either way. He wasn't going to be happy with her until he let go of what had happened between them. And, from her knowledge of his stubbornness, that was not going to be any time soon. She could kiss the vacation she wanted goodbye at least until the double homicide case was closed.

"You ready to go?" Nick asked, turning to him. She nodded, glancing one more time around the house. They grabbed Bob from the chair he'd been sitting in while they'd traded facts. They'd haul him back to 15 Division, book him, and then Andy would finally be allowed to go home. She was _not_ working on Sunday, no matter how good the overtime pay was. She needed a day off to not think about work and _sleep_.

"Do you want me to drive you home?" Nick asked her. _Yes_, she thought immediately, but she knew he didn't mean take her home like that. He just meant as a friend, like he always meant just friends. She mentally chastised herself for letting the thought even cross her mind. He never meant anything more than a friendly offer. "Andy?" Her name brought her back to reality.

"Um, no, I'm good, I brought my car," she said.

"Okay." He turned back to look at the road. And her heart sunk. She should have been prepared, she really should, but despite the mental talk she had just given herself, she was disappointed. Apparently her mind hadn't listened to the talk and had expected something she knew wouldn't come. Never in her wildest dreams could she picture a scenario where she and Nick actually ended up together. Something always got in the way. So she didn't know why she was so surprised he wasn't interested when she already knew he wasn't.

"So, are you and Swarek… friends again?" Nick asked, cautiously glancing her way.

"Nope," Andy said, emphasizing the end. "He is trying to rub his new girlfriend in my face and he won't give me any jobs that a monkey couldn't do."

"He's an ass," he said quietly. She looked over at him, curious and touched. "For doing what he's doing. With Marlo."

She smiled slightly. "Thanks. I kinda think so too. They really are perfect for each other. At least he's found someone he can be happy with."

"Don't do that to yourself." He shook his head, not taking his eyes off the road. "It's not your fault."

"Really? Because he told me he's dating her because she's, and I quote, 'not me'."

"That's his problem, not yours. If it's worth anything, he made the biggest mistake of his life by dating her instead of you." She shifted her eyes to trace his profile, watching the way his jaw clenched when he spoke about Sam. He meant what he said. And as much as she wished that made her feel better, knowing it couldn't lead anywhere didn't comfort her.

"We need to talk." Nick and Gail sat in his car after a particularly difficult case. A young girl had been taken in a copycat of one of 15 Division's worst ever nights. Gail had been abducted and held in a basement for nearly 24 hours, until they had managed to find her and get her out. But not before she'd had to go into the prison and talk to the man who'd held her, and not before she'd admitted she'd slept with Blackstone when she'd felt unwanted by Nick. Blackstone had told her about his opportunity to come home during the undercover op. An opportunity he'd passed up to go biking with Andy.

"Is this how you want to do this?" Gail could feel her world tumbling around her. She had instantly regretted going home with Blackstone when she'd done it, but she couldn't undo the past. She'd just have to live with the consequences.

"When I first met you, at that bar," he began. "You were so cold and distant. I thought, this girl is going to break your heart." Her face flickered with some unidentifiable emotion, but she didn't speak. "And here we are, so many years later."

She wasn't sure what to say. She knew nothing could make it better. The sting of her betrayal was only made worse by the fact that he had heard her confession, because he had been worrying about her and wanted to be there for her when she got out of the room. "Why didn't you come home?" She wanted to know what his reason had been for not coming back to her when he'd had the chance, even for a day.

"It was a weekend, Gail," he said quietly. "What did you want me to do, come back, wreck havoc on your life, and then go back to having no communication?"

"Yes!" She exclaimed.

He turned to her, surprised. Despite her current admission, he had already made up his mind. There was no way he was going to take her back. He had a new appreciation for Andy and what she'd gone through. She'd had hell from men recently, and there was no way he would ever do that to her. After that night, he had plans to pursue Andy with everything he had. Maybe moving on so soon would be insulting to Gail, but she already knew how he felt about Andy. "I'm sorry, Gail."

Gail picked up her purse and moved to open the door of Nick's truck and step out into the rain. She paused and turned back to him. "Tell her she's lucky. Good bye, Nick." She opened the door and walked out of his life.

Andy sighed as she dropped down onto her couch and turned on the TV. It was a Friday night, the first one she'd had free in two weeks, and she was spending it watching reruns of Seinfeld and drinking wine. When had this become her life?

She had barely dropped down onto the padded cushions when a knock sounded on the apartment door. She'd panicked when she and Sam had broken up and she'd gotten back from the undercover op. First she'd had an apartment, then she and Luke had bought the house together, then she and Sam had had the apartment together, but after the op, she'd had nowhere to go. Traci had taken her in for a few weeks, but she had found a smaller apartment that was close enough to 15 Division that she wouldn't have a long drive every morning.

She stood up and padded around the few boxes she hadn't yet unpacked to answer the door. And she was faced with none other than Nick. "Nick, what are you doing here?"

His face held the most pained expression she'd ever seen on it. "Gail, um…" Andy leaned closer, resting against the door. "She slept with Blackstone. The night after you and Marlo got stuck with the anthrax heroin. Apparently, she thought there was something going on between us and wanted to get back at me."

Without another word, she stepped back and let Nick inside. She motioned to the couch for him to sit while she went to the fridge and grabbed him a beer. He smiled at her slightly, gesturing at the TV. "Seinfeld? Really?"

"Jerry's humor can always make me feel better when I'm feeling like shit," she smiled back. "Here you go." She passed him the beer, which he immediately took a swig of. They sat in silence for a few minutes, watching Jerry and Elaine bicker with the Soup Nazi.

"How do you do it?" His voice made her turn and stare at him with a measure of confusion. "Move on, I mean."

She snorted. "Don't expect it to happen right away. I mean, when I found out about Luke and Jo, I was already into Sam and it still took me a long time to get over it. It won't happen overnight."

"I don't know how I'll ever be able to…" He trailed off and looked over to the TV again. "I don't know if I could ever trust her again. And I don't know how I can work with her if I don't trust her."

She shrugged in the most comforting way possible. "Maybe Frank will cut you some slack. He did with me. He let me have some time doing desk jobs, avoiding the detectives… Maybe he'll help you out, too. At the very least, you can ask him to keep you out of the same car as her for a while."

They sat in silence for a while longer, watching the antics of the friends in the show on TV. Eventually they moved, stretched out on the couch. Nick spread his arms out, one on the back of the couch and one on the side, and he lifted his feet to rest them on the ottoman. Andy leaned back so her feet hung over the edge of the couch and her knees were bent over his thighs. Her head rested against the pillow on the opposite end of the couch from Nick's body, and the arm holding her wine glass dangled off the side of the couch.

She relaxed, feeling totally comfortable and at ease with him. His presence sent a warmth through her, making her feel more safe and protected than she had felt in almost a year. She laid back and closed her eyes. Minutes later, she feel into a peaceful sleep, finally feeling like she would be okay if she took a few hours to really relax.

Nick smirked as he watched her doze off. He waited a few minutes before grabbing the glass from her hand and carefully placing it on the coffee table between the couch and the TV. He knew he shouldn't be feeling these things for her, especially so soon after his breakup with Gail. But he knew he'd made the right choose when he'd decided to go to Andy's to be breakup buddies again.

Dov sat outside, wondering where Chris was. A moment later, the woman he had been after for years appeared in front of him. "Gail? What's wrong?" She was standing in the rain while he was sheltered under the awning of the Black Penny.

"Nick and I broke up," she said, hiccuping slightly.

"What happened?" Dov stood up to pull her out of the rain, only to see her ever-perfect makeup was smudged and her hair was ratted.

"I cheated," she cried again. "I did it. It was me. It was all my fault. What the hell is wrong with me? I threw away the best thing I ever had because I thought he liked another woman!"

He was silent as he took in her image, then placed a hand on the small of her back and led her softly into the Penny.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Hey, everyone! I'm trying to make up for the fact that I haven't been able to update much for the past week, because seriously, updating and reading reviews are like my crack. So, I guess this one is kind of a filler chapter, case-solving wise, but I hope you guys like it. Read, review, and enjoy as always!**

Nick had never had such an easy, comfortable time with a woman. He and Andy ended up at the Penny together the next night, sitting beside each other at the bar. Despite the good time he had with her, he was still hurting from Gail's betrayal. He was sullenly nursing a beer while Andy sipped at a gin and tonic.

"How did you guys meet? You and Gail?" His head snapped up at her words. How had she not already heard the story?

"Um, well, it was a Vegas wedding," he said simply. "I think that pretty much explains it. We weren't really married, because we're Canadian and the priest was a drug dealer on the run from the law. But before we realized that, we got to know each other better, and we fell in love. Then I had to go to Afghanistan, and, well, you know the rest."

"Where did you actually meet, though?" She noticed a flicker of pain in his eyes and immediately kicked herself. "I'm sorry, you don't have to answer that if you don't want to."

"No, no," he rushed to explain. "I just always think about how stupid I am when I think about the night we met."

"Why?" Her curious eyes looked him over.

"The moment I saw her in the bar, I knew she was going to break my heart. I _knew_ it. And I still ended up engaged to her. And she cheated. And she did it. She broke my heart. And if I hadn't been so stupid, I could have stopped it."

"You know it's not your fault, right?" He snorted, wishing it were true. But there was nothing she could say to make him think that he couldn't have done something about it. "Remember when you said Sam was an idiot for letting me go? Gail is an idiot for letting you go. And she actually had control over it."

He smiled, taking in the sight of her. She looked beautiful, even when she was moping. Her glossy brown hair hung loose around her face, swirling down around her lightly tanned shoulders. She wore little makeup, but her face was so naturally gorgeous that she didn't need to. Her eyelashes were long and dark, her nose small and pointed at the end, and her lips full and delicate-looking. He was in deep. Almost as deep as he had been with Gail.

And the thought of Gail made him take a long drink from his beer. Damn, he thought he'd gotten past drinking to get over women when he'd left college.

"Stop torturing yourself," she said, smiling when he looked over.

He raised his eyebrows at her. "_I'm_ torturing myself? What about you? You've been mooning over Sam, despite the fact that you couldn't have done anything about it, and torturing _yourself_ about it. I'm not saying he's not an asshole, because he is, but you have got to stop telling yourself that it's your fault he's with Marlo now. It's not. And he doesn't deserve you if you have to change yourself for him to want you back."

She sat there, staring at him, her hand resting idly on the glass on the bar. "You really think that about me?"

"I would hate for you to really know what I think about you." He took another sip of beer, but chocked on it when he saw the offended expression on her face. "Oh, God, Andy no! I didn't mean in a bad way. Trust me, I only have nice thoughts about you."

"Nice?" She didn't look very pleased by that either.

"Complimentary?" He laughed a little when she raised an eyebrow at him. "I'm sorry, Andy, I don't know what the hell you want me to say. I have no bad thoughts about you in my head. It's just that some of the things I think about you are… a little embarrassing."

"Embarrassing how?" She looked genuinely confused. How could she still not know about how he felt? Hadn't he been more than obvious? Or maybe it was just in his head because of how he felt. Maybe he just assumed she knew because he thought about her all the time.

"How did you and Sam meet?" She eyed him. Answering a question with a question. She wasn't sure if she should push the issue or let him change the subject. Figuring she should give him some time after his breakup with Gail, she decided to answer his question.

"I arrested him while he was on an undercover op, my first day as a cop." She shook her head. "Same day I met Luke, actually. And the same day my life started going downhill. Until…"

"Until what?" Their eyes met for a few moments before she glanced away. There was too much emotion in his gaze, too much… something she couldn't place. But she was scared of it. She wasn't sure if she could trust her heart anymore. Or anyone else's for that matter.

"Um, nothing," she said, looking down at her drink. "Anyway, he got pissed at me for my rookie mistake, and then ended up becoming my training officer. Which was definitely a road I shouldn't have gone down, but I did, and this is where I ended up. So much for taking a risk."

"Do you wanna take another?" He asked, meeting her shocked gaze again.

"Are you serious right now?" She asked in utter disbelief. "Did you not hear a single thing I just said?"

"No, I heard it." He smiled a little at her expression. "This is a different kind of risk. It's a safe risk."

"A safe risk?"

"Yes," he chuckled, a low throaty rumble that bubbled out of his chest. "Go with me to Frank and Noelle's wedding. It's next weekend."

He could hear her breath catch in her throat, see the blank expression on her face, and it made him somewhat… satisfied. She wasn't repulsed, which was the last thing he wanted. If they went to the wedding together and nothing happened, then he wouldn't try to make things go faster than they should. But if they had fun, maybe h'd let himself give her a kiss goodnight.

"Yes." She said it so quietly he wasn't sure he heard it.

"Yes?" She smiled at him.

"Yes, Nick, I'll go with you." He could hardly believe his own ears. He was about to have the best week of his life.

Andy had not been prepared for the sight of Nick in a suit. The crisp gray wool and slick black satin of his shirt complemented his tan skin perfectly. He left the top button undone and combed back his hair. It left him looking strikingly handsome. He had always been good looking, but she didn't think she'd ever seen him look so… hot.

Nick had similar thoughts about her. He had always known her to be beautiful, but tonight she looked gorgeous. Her body was wrapped in a red dress that reminded him of a Grecian goddess. Her hair was curled in large waves that hung down to the middle of her back. Her eyes were lined, abnormal for her but he guessed fitting for a wedding, and they looked dewier than usual. He could barely breathe when he looked at her, much less tell her what he thought of her dress. Her heels brought her only a few inches below his height, matching them up nearly perfectly. It put her mouth in range of his.

But those thoughts had no place in his head now if he planned on making it through the night. "You look… amazing." He figured he should say something before they left her apartment for the night.

"Um, thanks," she said, dragging her eyes up to his. "You're not so bad yourself." She smiled, trying to lighten the tension coursing between them,

He grinned. "You ready?"

"I'm a little nervous, but yeah, I'm ready." They smiled at each other before he held out his elbow.

"Why are you nervous?" She took his elbow and they began down the hallway out of the building. "You have no reason to be nervous. If anyone should be nervous, it's me. I mean, Gail is scary to begin with, but I'm showing up at a wedding with someone else when she really wanted to go with me. I fear for my life."

She could hear the humor in his voice, but she knew he was partially right. "I guess. Do you know who she is going with?"

"I have no clue." He shrugged and pushed open the door to the parking lot. "She won't really talk to me anymore." She shot him a look. "Okay, not that I don't understand why. But I have more of a right to be pissed off than she does. It's not like I want to talk to her, but I do eventually want to be friends again."

"Do you think you'll be able to get there?" Such an easy question to answer if you were an optimist or a pessimist. But for him, being neither, it was much more difficult.

"At this point, I don't. But hey, I thought we'd end up married with four kids and a dog named Scooter, so apparently I'm not a psychic as I thought." Okay, there was a note of bitterness in his voice. More like a whole song, but she couldn't exactly blame him. She was still bitter towards Sam and it had been almost a year. She knew the night was going to be rocky, but she could never have predicted just how rocky it would be.

"And now, for the first time ever, Mr. and Mrs. Frank Best!" The DJ announced, waving his hands as Frank and Noelle appeared on the dance floor. Her smile spread hugely across her face as he took her in his arms and they began dancing to Steven Tyler crooning he didn't want to miss a thing.

Andy rocked back against the column behind her and smiled at the couple. When she had been a rookie and they had both been training officers, she would have never thought of them getting married. But now, she couldn't see it any other way. They truly belonged together. She looked up when Nick came over, holding out a plastic cup filled with red liquid. She scrunched up her nose and looked up at him after glancing down at the glass. "What is it?"

"Spiked punch," he smiled. "They don't have alcohol because of the baby and the dangers it poses to the depleted force when people start driving home, but someone had the courtesy to bring a flask so we could spike our own punches. After asking Noelle, of course."

"Was this someone Dov?" She asked. "Because if it was, he definitely didn't ask Noelle."

"No," Nick laughed. "It was Chris."

"Oh." She swished her drink around. "Then he probably did ask her." She took a sip. "So, how was sitting through the ceremony with Gail?"

He smirked. "How was sitting through the ceremony with Sam? And Luke."

She glared at him playfully. "Okay fine, you win." She watched him as he took a sip of his drink. "Seriously, though, how are you? You don't need to go home, right?"

He smiled over at her. "Nope. And I definitely am not leaving you this early. The night is still young." She smiled back at him, truly enjoying the time she was spending with him.

Across the reception hall, Gail held her cup so hard it would have shattered had it been glass. She shouldn't have been so upset by this. She knew Nick had feelings for Andy. It was part of the reason she'd done what she'd done. But she didn't think he would move on so quickly. Maybe his feelings for her were stronger than Gail had suspected.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Chris's deep voice sounded beside her. She turned to him, surprised. Their relationship hadn't been as friendly as it had been before they'd gone out since they broke up, and now he apparently wanted to talk.

"Right now, I'm wondering why you care," she said cooly.

"But that's not what you're upset about." It wasn't a question. She had always made it a plan to be cold to everyone she had a relationship with, so no one got close, no one knew too much about her, no one could hurt her. Apparently she'd done worse of a job at it than she thought she had. Chris, the man she'd once loved, knew too much about her. And he already had hurt her.

"No, it's not what I'm upset about. But I want to know before I tell you what I am upset about." She stared at him, her new bangs shading her eyelashes and making her look more mysterious than ever. Yet another defense tactic.

"I still care about you, Gail," he said, holding his own punch cup. "I never stopped."

"You're the only person who's ever gotten this close to me," she said. "You know more about me than anyone else does."

"I'm in the same boat," he said quietly, still not looking at her. "I let you in places no one else has ever been."

They lapsed into silence for a moment, watching people flood back onto the dance floor after the first dance. "Why do you think we didn't work?"

He looked over at her, gauging her emotions. She really was bothered by it. It wasn't what she'd been worrying about when he'd walked over, but it was truly bothering her now. "I couldn't trust you. But it wasn't your fault. I let you in so close, I had to put up other defenses to keep myself from getting hurt. Not letting myself trust you was one of them."

"Why do you think we do this? Keep people out and put up defenses?" She asked, still watching the people on the dance floor.

"Human nature." Chris shrugged. "It's a survival instinct to protect your heart." He glanced over at her again before deciding to go into the breach. "Why do you ask?"

"Because I forgot."

"You… forgot?" He asked hesitantly.

Gail looked over at him, a wealth of pain in her eyes. "Yes, I forgot. I forgot to protect myself against Nick. I let him in and then I couldn't make myself believe he did the same with me and I lost him. I forgot to keep him at a distance, so I lost him."

Chris hauled her up against his side, rubbing her arm to comfort her. "Sometimes you have to let people in and risk getting hurt to find out if they're worth it. He wasn't. Don't get me wrong, he has every right to be pissed at you, and yes, even dump you, but the fact that everything that happened between the two of you happened at all means he wasn't worth it."

"So that just makes me an idiot then." She said, shuddering slightly against his chest.

"No, Gail, you're not an idiot." He smiled down at her. "You took a chance that didn't work out. But hey." He tilted her chin up so she was looking up at him. "There'll be other chances. I promise." He flicked a finger down her cheek, then released her and walked back into the throng of people around the buffet table. She stared after him, a crease between her eyebrows. She looked around the room, trying to sort out her feelings, and her eyes landed on Dov. And she realized Chris was right. Maybe there was hope for her after all.

"Frank." Luke tapped the other man on the shoulder, smiling when the newlywed turned around.

"Luke! So glad you came," he said, smiling hugely.

"Congrats, Frank." Luke smiled back. "You are one lucky guy." He hugged the other man, but looked a bit troubled when they let each other go.

"What's going on, Luke?" Frank knew the detective well enough to know something was bothering him.

"You still taking bets on when Swarek and McNally will get back together?" He nodded over at Andy and Nick smiling at each other in the corner.

"Yeah," Frank said warily.

"I've got never," he said cooly, handing the money to Frank.

"Uh, actually, we can't do never, then no one would see any money back. We put a five year cap on it. If nothing happens in five years, everyone gets their money back."

"Fine, five years." He still pushed the money at Frank. Then he turned quickly and walked away. A moment later, Noelle walked up and rested her head on his shoulder, looking confused as she took in his shocked expression and the money in his hands. "Frank? What's going on?"

"Luke just bet on when Andy and Sam will get back together." Noelle's expression immediately changed to match his.

"Oh, you're right that is weird."

"This is nice," Andy said, as she rested her head on Nick's shoulder on the dance floor. They swayed to the music, only one couple among many dancing the last dance of the wedding. She looked around, spotting Sam and Marlo dancing together. They were pressed close, just like she and Nick, but there was something in their embrace that she knew was lacking from hers and Nick's. Her eyes began to burn with tears she didn't know she wanted to cry and she turned her head into Nick's chest, away from the sight that was a nail in her coffin.

Sam lifted his eyes from Marlo's head and scanned the dance floor. He saw Frank and Noelle dancing, gazing at each other with so much love in their eyes. He smiled a little, knowing the real deal when he saw it. They would last forever. He moved on, spotting Dov dancing with that new rookie, Chloe. Crazy little chick, but if anyone could handle her, it was Dov. The guy was the nicest, most tolerant man Sam had ever met. He smirked, knowing that Epstein had his work cut out for him.

He saw Gail and Chris standing on the side of the floor, talking and drinking. A woman walked over to join them, probably Chris's girlfriend. Gail smiled at her, not showing any emotion as usual. But he would be willing to bet she was jealous, if not of Chris's relationship with Denise, of the relationship in general.

Finally, his eyes settled on Nick and Andy, dancing on the floor. She had her head against his chest, suggesting she was completely comfortable with him. A stab of pain ran through him. They had never danced together like that. But she would dance like that with another man. He needed to stop holding Marlo against her.

"Nash, letter for you," Chloe said the next morning, dropping a plain white envelope on Traci's desk.

"Oooh, I wonder what it is," she said, wiggling her eyebrows at Andy, who sat right next to her.

"Don't hold your breath, it's probably a bill." Andy laughed along with her.

"Yeah, yeah." Traci rolled her eyes and tore it open, only to drop it on the desk, horrified.

"What?" The smile immediately dropped from Andy's face and she hopped off the desk to stand behind her best friend. In her hands, was a letter that read:

"_Traci Nash, back off. Or, if you're reading this, you know what will happen._"

"Okay, okay, Trace, calm down," Andy said, trying to be rational. If the letter had been delivered to the station, they would be able to track down the sender better. And Traci was detective. She would be able to protect herself. Not that the entire force wouldn't help her, but she shouldn't need the help.

"No, no, Andy, you… you don't get it."

Andy was worried. Not much rattled Traci, and it had to be big to get her this scared. "What's wrong, Trace?"

"That's Jerry's handwriting." Their gazes met, and Andy understood Traci's panic.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Hey, everyone! Sorry it's been awhile. I've been crazy busy. Turns out, applying to college is not as easy as you'd think. Anyway, here's the next chapter. It is, again, kind of a filler chapter, but I like it, and it does advance the plot. I did kind of change the paintball scene, I know, but it's quicker this way and it keeps the plot moving better. Also, in response to a comment, I'm so sorry I didn't realize there were no breaks between the scenes. I write it in word with breaks and I guess they don't show up when I copy paste it into here. There are x's there for this chapter, but I'll keep experimenting to figure out what works best. As always, read, review, and enjoy!**

"Hey, Dov," Chloe sidled up next to Dov and slid her hands around his shoulders. He grabbed the hands and turned around to see her smiling seductively up at him. He shook his head at her.

"Chloe," he said warningly as he pulled her with him into an empty room. He glanced around to figure out where exactly they were, and he noticed the one way glass. They were in an observation room looking into interrogation. They'd be safe there. He turned back to look down at her. She leaned up at the same time and managed to catch his mouth in a kiss. He closed his eyes, sinking into it for a moment. He lost himself in the softness of her lips, the sweetness of her breath, and the silkiness of her hair.

But this couldn't happen. They couldn't do this. He was her training officer, for God's sake. He remembered what happened between Andy and Sam, and, as much as he really did want to be with Chloe, he didn't want it to happen this way. No good came from there. He opened his eyes and pulled away.

She smiled up at him. "Mmmmmm, good morning to you, too."

"We need to talk about this," Dov said, holding her shoulders to keep her away from him. "We can't do this."

She looked up and him and giggled. "We already did. Or don't you remember? Last night. We christened the reception bathroom just like Noelle and Frank christened their wedding bed."

He pushed her away as she tried to kiss him again. He cringed as an image appeared in his mind. "Okay, ew. I don't want to think about that. We can't… be together, Chloe. It's against the rules."

"That didn't stop Andy and Sam. Or, so I heard." She smiled up at him. "Why should it stop us?"

Dov shook his head at her. "Because, I saw what happened. I'm not going to have our relationship go that way."

She pulled back. "What way do you want our relationship to go, then?"

Dov blew out a deep breath. "I don't… I don't think I want to do this at all. Right now, I think I just want to take this risk right now. I do want to be with you, and under any other circumstances, I would have been so into that. Even a few years from now, if you weren't a rookie and I wasn't a training officer, this would be okay. But right now, it's just… not."

She stared into his eyes, attempting to judge his true emotions. She'd never known Dov to do anything but follow his heart completely, so she didn't really think he was lying, but she could never be too careful when it came to _her_ heart. Then again, she hadn't really known Dov for that long. After a few moments, she nodded. "Okay."

"What… that's it?" His eyebrows drew down in confusion. He'd been expecting to be chewed out for not being willing to give their relationship a chance. But all she said was 'okay'. It made no sense. She was not the type of person to just accept this docilely. She did nothing docilely.

"I can't make you do something you don't want to do," she shook her head. "Don't think I'm not pissed off at you, because I sure as hell am. And I'm hurt that you don't want to give us a shot. But I can't force you to do it." She shrugged. "You're a coward, Dov Epstein."

She turned on her heel and walked out of the room. He stared after her. A coward. He could handle it if that was the worst she thought of him. He was insulted, yes, but she didn't think he goofed off. She didn't think he wasn't a hard worker. She didn't think he was immature. He could handle that.

xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx

Nick watched as Andy suited up. He never got tired of the easy grace with which she did everything. She was so tough on the job, but in reality, she was kind of like a big marshmallow. He wanted to be on the receiving end of her compassion. The last time they had really talked, she had been pissed off at him for shooting her with a gun that he knew wasn't loaded.

He knew she didn't entirely trust him, and he almost couldn't stand it. He had to figure out a way to work out her trust issues with him if he wanted them to ever be anything more than friends. He watched her pull her hair into a ponytail and stared at her, amazed. She was the most intriguing person he'd ever met.

"You ready, Collins?" Traci smiled as he snapped his head in her direction.

"Uh huh," Nick said. Traci nodded and smiled knowingly at him as she exited the locker room. He stared after her, confused at her expression. What was that for?

"She could be dead." Gail shoved Andy lightly with her foot. Andy opened her eyes and looked up at the surly blonde.

"Okay, all we have to do," she said as she stood up and wiped the dust off of the black vest and pants she was wearing. "Is get the spotted camel and then this thing is ours, right?"

"That is a giraffe," Gail said sassily.

"It's a camel," Dov and Andy shot back, looking out between the empty barrels blocking them from the open. The three of them were crouched behind the barrels, surveying the spotted camel mounted on a pole in the middle of an open space. An idea sparked in Andy's mind. She turned to face Dov and Gail.

"Wait, they think I'm down, right?" Dov and Gail nodded hesitantly. "So, you guys take the left wing as a distraction, and leave the rest to me."

They nodded and shifted over two steps to peer out around the side of the barrels. Andy nodded at them once and they crept out into the open.

Nick slid behind the large rectangular box on the opposite side of the open space. "McNally's down."

Traci and Chris eyed him curiously. "You sure?"

"Oh, yeah, I saw it." He nodded. "There's only two of them left. I'm doing a head sweep. You two pay attention to my orders and do exactly as I tell you."

"You sure this is a good plan?" Nick looked down at Traci with a cocky smile in place on his face.

"I was in the army, remember? I was trained for this." She gave him a doubtful smile, but didn't fight him further on the issue. He turned back to perusing the open space. His eyes widened as he spotted two heads moving out from behind the stack of barrels. "Two heads. Nash, you take the taller, Dias, you take the shorter. Make sure they do not get away. If they get to that spotted camel, this is all over." Traci and Chris nodded and edged out on opposite sides of the box they'd been hiding behind.

Nick lifted his head up over the top and began to plot his way to the large animal mounted on the pole. He ducked down a little and began to creep out the side of the box after Traci. He had made it around to the front of the box when he felt a sudden impact against his side. The ache was sharp and deep. He turned around, confused, to see Andy's smiling face. By then, Traci and Chris were across the open area, trying to outwit Dov and Gail. They wouldn't notice that he was down.

He narrowed his eyes and shook his head at Andy's smile of glee as she made her way to the pole and tugged down the stuffed animal. Traci and Chris did notice that, and they groaned, while Dov and Gail cheered along with Andy. She looked down at Nick where he sat, holding his side. Harmless as they might be, paintballs _hurt_. "See, Nick? I fight for that I want, and I _win_." She smirked at him, turning around and walking out of the paintball arena with Dov and Gail.

"You think she's talking about paintball?" Nick asked, eyebrows raised.

"I think she's talking about Sam Swarek," Traci replied, eyebrows raised. It made Nick want to growl. Like a goddamn idiot.

xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx

"You guys look like you had fun," Sam met Andy outside 15 Division, smirking with a cup of coffee in his hands.

Andy smirks in return. "I have a gift."

"Yeah? And what would that be?" He stood in front of her, arms crossed, still smirking. He was always smirking.

"Guess," she said, smiling easily up at him. She would never have classified herself as sassy before that moment, but holding this over his head made her feel oddly powerful.

He opened his mouth to reply, but it wasn't his words that came out. "You missed parade." Oliver walked between them, making their heads turn and look over after him.

Andy raised her eyebrows. "Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning." Sam nodded.

He turned to face her. "You're with Price today."

Andy nodded in recognition. "Sweet." She bowed sideways slightly as she walked past him and into the station. He watched her walk away pensively.

"You're awfully quiet today," Andy noted, glancing over at Chloe. Normally the rookie chattered away, regardless of whether or not anyone was actually listening to her. Andy preferred to tune her out, but today she didn't even have to. The girl was silent.

She shrugged unconvincingly. "Just tired."

Andy narrowed her eyes. "You know we're cops, right? We're trained to know when people are lying."

Chloe rolled her eyes. "Okay, fine, whatever. He didn't want me, and that's why I'm upset."

"Who didn't want you?" Andy knew exactly what that felt like, and this might be her opportunity to bitch to someone who understood. "Why didn't they?"

"It was…" she glanced over at Andy. "Okay, promise you won't laugh."

"I won't laugh." Andy stared at her in confusion. Why would she laugh at someone who hadn't wanted her?

"It was Dov," she confessed. "And he didn't want me because he said it was too complicated right now. You know, him being a T.O. and everything."

Andy did snicker. At Chloe's glare, she held up her hand. "No, no, I'm not laughing at you. Well, I kind of am, but not because you wanted to be with Dov. Because you're upset that a guy who doesn't care enough about you to do whatever it takes to keep you didn't want to be with you, too."

Chloe watched her pensively. She raised her eyebrows and turned to look out the window. "That's not such bad advice, McNally. Maybe you should take it."

Yeah, Andy thought. Yeah, maybe she should.

xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx

Dov thanked God that he'd been paired with Gail for the day. He wanted to know how she was doing since she and Nick broke up. He knew it hadn't been easy on her. He also knew Chris had been talking to her. And the feelings he felt for Chloe didn't even compare to the feelings he had for Gail. He had been half in love with her since before she and Chris broke up. It hadn't stopped, no matter how many times she tried to shut him down.

He wasn't sure what that meant about said feelings, but he knew, now that they were both single and, as far as he could tell emotionally available, he was not letting her go. And speak of the devil.

She glared at him as she walked out of the building. "Let's go." Why did her hostility seem to make his feelings even deeper?

Dov glanced across the car at Gail. Her hands were clenched on the steering wheel, but that wasn't exactly odd. She practically made a living out of being tense. Her eyes were fixed on the road and her jaw was so tight, she could have bitten through nails. She didn't usually have a clenched jaw when she was tense. But she did when she was angry. Clearly something is wrong.

"Gail." At her name, she looked over at Dov. Amazing, beautiful, caring Dov. Okay, so maybe she sounded more like she was describing her pet dog, but she was serious. She had been planning for a few days to tell him how she felt the next time they worked together. That was one of the things she had never understood about the way 15 Division handled partnerships. Rookies and T.O.s were always paired together, but after that, some partnerships were constant and others weren't. It seemed to her Andy always had a steady partner. Then again, maybe that was why she feel for all of them. At least she was rarely paired with Dov.

"Yeah, Dov, what is it?" She asked, trying to act normal. If she started acting weird, he'd think something was up, and that could totally ruin her plan.

"I have a girl question to ask you." Her heart began to speed up. Maybe he was going to ask her about- "I wanted to know what the female perspective on relationships in the Division is." Her heart was lightening speed. He was asking what she thought about a cop dating another cop. She was the only one he could be talking about. Aside from Andy. But Andy already had a bunch of choices. He wouldn't put himself in that position. And Traci. But she was still getting over Jerry's death. Yeah, Gail was the only option.

"Oh, yeah?" Here it came. He would finally declare his feelings for her and they could drive off into the sunset together, to hell with the rest of the shift.

"Yeah. See, there's this thing with-" You. That's what was coming next. You. "-Chloe. And I just wanted to know- are you okay?"

Her grip had gone white-knuckled on the wheel. "What? Oh, yeah, I'm totally fine. Don't worry about me. What were you saying about Chloe?" The bitch.

Dov glanced at her carefully. He wasn't sure what to make of her perky tone, but he knew it couldn't be good.

xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx

"Dias, hurry it up," Oliver yelled as he watched Chris walk at a leisurely pace out of the station. Or he perceived it as a leisurely pace. He wasn't entirely sure. Chris could have been speed walking and it would have been too slow for Oliver that morning. Everything was pissing him off.

"Sorry, sir," Chris said as he dropped his bag into the backseat of the car and then folded himself into the passenger seat.

"Don't call me sir, I'm not your T.O. anymore." Why was Dias making him so mad? Dias was the one rookie who didn't usually get on his nerves. Andy frayed his wits. When she was in trouble, he sometimes couldn't handle it. He had taken it upon himself to be like a second father to her. She needed the extra support sometimes, when she couldn't go to her dad with things. When Sam got to her.

Epstein just plain annoyed him when he was just being himself. He rarely liked to call him by his first name, unless he was being very serious about something and dropped the glib banter he usually used. Peck was cold and bossy, and even though he knew she had her reasons, she was far to young to be that cynical. Traci was usually fine, but she took unnecessary risks sometimes. She had been in a relationship with Jerry, even when she knew it could have been dangerous. And she left her partner to take her kid home. Unnecessary risks.

He didn't know when he had started referring to had started referring to family as unnecessary risks, but apparently that's what that morning had boiled down to. He just hoped he'd be able to make it through the shift without sinking a bullet into some innocent person for putting the wrong amount of cream in his coffee.

"Please don't hurt me when I ask this," Chris said, sitting in the passenger seat of car 15-04. "But why are you in such a bad mood?"

"What makes you think I'm in a bad mood?" Chris looked away at Oliver's harsh tone and they sat in silence for a few minutes. "My wife wants a divorce."

Chris turned to look at Oliver. "When?"

"You mean when does she want me gone, or when did she tell me she wants me gone?" The younger man looked away again. Oliver sighed. "She told me this morning, and she wants the divorce finalized as soon as possible."

"Do you want to get divorced?"

"Does it really sound like I want to get divorced?" Chris raised his eyebrows at Oliver, who sighed again. "Look, I'm sorry. I just… I really don't want to get divorced, and I can't seem to figure what the hell to do about it besides stall the divorce papers."

"So stall the divorce papers until you figure it out," Chris said reasonably.

"How can you be so level-headed about this?"

"Because it's not happening to me?" Chris asked. "If we were talking about being a father or exes, that would be a completely different story."

"Problems with Denise?" Oliver asked, glad the spotlight could be moved to Chris's side of the car. As much as he wanted to do something about his situation, not thinking about it seemed like the best strategy at that moment. He might even take Chris up on his advice. Not that he'd tell the rookie that, but he just might.

"Yeah, I have problems with Denise," Chris exclaimed. "Problems with Denise make up the majority of my life. And the rest of my life is work."

"What's the problem?"

"She wants to go back to Timmons," he said.

"Oh." Oliver wasn't sure what to say. He'd never been good at the emotional stuff. "She want to take the kid?"

"Yeah," Chris answered self-deprecatingly. "She wants to take the kid."

"Listen up, Dias," Oliver said. Chris's tone had made up his mind about what to say to the younger man. "Your kid means a lot to you, right?" Chris and Oliver nodded at the same time. "Right. So, take it from me, when your wife kicks you out and you can't see your kids, it is the worst feeling in the world. And I've been shot. So you do what you need to do to go or stay, whichever you want, but you do not give up on that kid. If she asks for sole custody, you fight it with everything you've got. That kid might hate having divorced parents, but that kid would despise having a dad who gave up on him. You got it?"

Chris nodded silently and Oliver turned back to the road.

xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx

"Good shift, McNally?" Sam met Andy as she was walking out of the station. It had been a fairly uneventful day. She and Chloe had arrested a guy for a moving violation and a young woman for public indecency. Who streaked in a public park?

"Yeah, wasn't bad." She shrugged. She stopped in front of him. She had been hoping she wouldn't have to see him again. She didn't think she could take much more of him rubbing Marlo in her face. Then again, she'd made up her mind to stop being bothered by it. And she'd made up her mind to stop fighting for him. He was going to be an ass, he didn't deserve her.

Or so she kept telling herself. But then she thought of the look on his face when he'd asked her to stay with him, or the way he acted with Sarah's kids, the intensity in his eyes the first time they'd made love. Why couldn't she stop calling it making love, even when she decided any chance of them having a relationship was gone? She was hopelessly devoted, but he didn't need to know that. Fake it until you make it, right? So, why did her feelings for him have her so conflicted? She couldn't decide what to do about it.

And then there was Nick. She had really, really strong feelings for Nick, too. What the hell was wrong with her? Someone was going to get hurt in this scenario, and she wasn't sure entirely who.

"You know, McNally, you never told me what your gift was." He watched her with a smirk and crossed his arms over his chest.

"You never guessed."

"Give it up, McNally."

She sighed and made up her mind. She looked up into his eyes, those deep, dark, intense eyes that had tempted her on so many levels so many times. "I know when to give up." He tilted his head and his eyebrows drew down. "That's my gift."

She pushed past him and he turned around to watch her walk away. There was no way she'd been talking about paintball.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Hello, again, everyone! I'm glad it hasn't been so long between updates this time. I always hate to keep you guys waiting. I do have a few things before getting to the chapter, which I think will make many of you happy and many of you unhappy. This is the chapter everyone has been waiting for. But don't worry, there's ****_plenty_**** more story to come. But before that, I just have a few responses to comments. First of all, whoever the Guest is that told me I should be the real writer for the show, I love you. That's the best praise I've ever gotten, and thank you so much for saying that. And second, I love hearing what you all have to say, whether your opinions are good or bad, but I would much appreciate it if any negative opinions could be sent to me in a private message. I definitely want to hear your opinion and criticism, but if you don't wish to present it in a constructive way, I'd be happy to hear about it in a private message. Thanks! And now, read, review, and enjoy! You guys are the best!**

"We need to get to the bottom of this note," Frank said the next morning at parade. "I know we've let that go for a few days, but it's time to get back to work. I want to know if that note is connected to the death of Detective Barber or the double homicide case. If not, we have three open cases for the detectives, and some of you are going to have to be taken off of patrol duties to help out the detectives. So the sooner we figure this out, the better for all of us. Understood?"

15 Division stared back out at him, nodding mutely. "Alright, then. Protect, serve, and sort this mess out." The officers assembled in front of him nodded and dissipated, checking the board for their assignments and leaving from there.

Andy hung behind when the rest of the officers left for their duties and stood in the room while Frank took a sip of his coffee. He looked up at her a few moments later when she hadn't moved and raised his eyebrows. "McNally?"

"Uh, sir, we already had the note verified," she said. "A handwriting expert and a computer both compared the note to a sample of Jerry's- sorry, Detective Barber's handwriting that we had on file."

"And?" Frank asked. She could tell he was impatient, and she couldn't blame him.

"They weren't a match." She shook her head. "It was a very good copy, but the writing was not the same."

"It had to be seriously similar if it fooled Nash," Frank said, eyebrows raised in surprise. "It had to be a pro that forged it."

Andy nodded her agreement. "I was about to go tell Nash and the detectives about it. Is there any more information you'd like me to pass on?"

"Yes. Tell them they're getting Dias and Epstein to help them out. Even though we have no direct evidence that note is connected to either of the two cases, there's no way in hell that's a coincidence." Andy nodded and walked out of the room.

Nick met her in the hallway when she left the room. He grinned at her. "I have something to tell you."

"Apparently it's making you giddy and up," she said, looking him over and taking in the bounce in his step. That was new.

"Yeah, it is." His grin grew wider, if that were at all possible. "So-"

"Don't think I don't want to hear this, because I really do," she said, holding a hand to his chest to halt him from going further. "But I really need to go talk to the detectives about the case."

"We get a break?" His grin faded and curiosity and concern replaced it.

"Uh, yeah, we got the results on the note Traci got," Andy said, pulling the door open. "I'll talk to you later, okay?"

"Um, yeah, sure," Nick said lamely as the door closed in his face.

"You got news for us, McNally?" Luke asked as Andy made her way into the room the detectives were in.

"Yeah, the note was verified by both a computer and a handwriting expert." Traci's mouth dropped open, and Andy rushed to add, "It's not real. It's a really, _really_ good fake, and Frank wants you guys to investigate it as if it's connected to one of the open cases."

"_One_ of the open cases?" Sam asked in confusion.

"I think Staff Sergeant Best is under the impression the investigation of Detective Barber's death is still open." Andy raised her eyebrows and gave them a tight smile.

"But we caught the killer," Traci said. Andy could tell she was still trying to process the information that the note hadn't been real, but she was trying to work past it to gain the new information being thrown at her. "Marco Jones confessed. His prints were on the brake line of the car that was cut. Why would he not be the killer?"

"I'm not sure, but I know that Frank Best is one hell of a good cop." Andy shrugged. "If he thinks it's not closed, it's not closed."

Andy almost smiled at the picture of Luke, Sam, and Traci sitting with the same expression of confusion and perplexity on their faces. But she had work to do. She was riding with Nick, as usual, and they were already a little late for staring their rounds.

xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx

Traci looked over at Sam and Luke once the door had closed and Andy was gone. "Why does Frank think that Marco Jones falsely confessed?"

Luke and Sam exchanged glances. "You're the only one of us who was a detective then," Luke pointed out. "If any of us has the answer to that question, it's you."

She rolled her eyes, breathing out harshly. "Okay, so I'll admit, the confession was rushed, and the details were sketchy. Jones was a mechanic, and his weren't the only fingerprints on the severed brake line. But the confession and the fingerprints were enough to put him in jail. And it was enough to make me think I could finally put my feelings for Jerry to bed. I think I might have gotten too caught up in trying to make myself feel better and just accepted the way the case closed."

"Anyone else think it's time to reopen the murder of Detective Barber?" Sam asked. Luke raised his hand instantly and Traci raised her much more slowly. Sam nodded. "I'll go get the files."

Sam exited the room and Traci buried her head in her hands. "Why now?"

Luke looked over at her, confused. "Excuse me?"

"Why now?" She repeated, lifting her head and looking straight into Luke's eyes. He glanced around nervously. He had never been good at comforting women. He had only been romantic with Andy when he'd felt guilty about sleeping with Jo.

"Nash, what are you talking about?"

"I have a date tonight," she dropped her head back in frustration and confusion. "With Dex."

He didn't know Traci that well, but he knew Dex was her ex, and Leo's father. "Are you… sure that's a good idea?"

"Well, I mean, why wouldn't it be?" She glanced over at him. "We worked out our issues, they're in the past. I think he's really matured since the last time we were together."

Luke raised his eyebrows. "I just… getting back together with exes is rarely a good idea. And I should know." Traci remembered the circumstances of his and Andy's breakup. She didn't trust him, by any means, but there may have been a grain of salt to his advice. "I just want you to be sure, Traci."

She watched him carefully. He'd called her Traci. He was talking to her as a friend, not as a coworker or Andy's ex. It was persuasive. "Yeah, I'll think about it."

Sam chose that moment to re-enter the room, arms loaded down with files. "Let's do this shit."

xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx

"What do you say we go back to the station and question the guy we got at the break in?" Nick shot a smile across the car at Andy as she glanced out the window. She was letting him drive for the day. "We can see if he knows anything about Detective Barber's murder. If we think the cases are connected, he might have something to do with it. Or at least know something about it."

"We have to patrol for the day," she smiled. "Next time we're on booking, though, maybe we can."

Nick nods slowly, clenching his jaw. "Right."

Andy glanced over at him, confused. "What's wrong?"

He shakes his head, his jaw still tight. "Nothing." Andy watched him carefully, but remained silent. There was something wrong with him, and she was going to figure out what it was.

"Oooh, hey, what was it you wanted to tell me this morning?" She tried to lighten the mood and figured that was a lighthearted change of topic.

"Oh, it was nothing." She rolled her eyes.

"Bullshit." She smiled as he glanced over at her in shock. "C'mon, Nick, I wanna know!"

He sighed and rolled his eyes. "Gail gave me my jacket back."

She glanced around. "I think I missed something."

"It's the last thing I had leftover at her house." He smiled at her as she watched him, confused.

She nodded her understanding. "And that means she's finally ready to let the relationship go." That thought made her heart flutter. She had been waiting for some sign from Gail that she was done with Nick. Maybe then she'd be able to decide what to do about her confusing feelings for him. But knowing that now only made her more confused.

He nodded, getting excited again. "It means she's ready to let the relationship go. And I can move on." He glanced over at her as he spoke, both hoping and not hoping she'd understand his point. If she did, she might respond in kind. Then again, it might scare her off. Maybe it would be better to just ambush her. Either way, he was going to tell her sometime soon. When he wasn't stuck in a car with her for another eight hours.

It was finally the end of shift. Nick entered the station, hoping he could set up a time to talk to Bob Smith the next morning. He found Traci pacing in the hallway and tapped her arm to get her attention. She turned to him, looking preoccupied and worried. "Anything wrong, Trace?"

"No, no." She gave him a false smile and he decided not to press the issue. "What's going on, Nick?"

"I was wondering if there would be time tomorrow before parade for me to talk to Bob Smith," he said, hoping she would know.

"I don't think that's going to be possible." She shook her head this morning. "He made bail this morning, and his trial isn't for another three months. He might have run, for all we know." She glanced over her shoulder, then turned back towards him. "Hey, Nick, I gotta go, but I'll see you tomorrow morning, okay?"

He glared after her as she walked off down the hallway, and stalked out of the station to his truck. He was pissed off. And he had a right to be.

"Hey, Collins." He heard Andy's voice from over his shoulder and tensed up more. As much as he was pissed off, he was more hurt than anything else. She had time for everything in the world more than him. She wanted to spend time with anyone else more than him.

"Hey, Andy," he replied without turning around. He hadn't originally been planning on it, but maybe this was the perfect time for him to tell her how he felt. And tell her off at the same time.

"Nick, will you please tell me what is wrong?" She sounded confused and exasperated.

In a split second decision, he whirled around to face her. "You want to know what's wrong? _You're_ what's wrong." He knew the words were harsh, but his anger was urging him on. "You know, today we could have gone back to the station, questioned Bob Smith, and found a connection between him and Jerry's murder. Or at least, between him and the double homicide. But no, we were on patrol, and the good Andy McNally can't go back to the station when she's on patrol to question a suspect. And now he made bail, and he's gone. Traci's not sure he's even gonna come back. So we missed our chance, all because you decided you couldn't stray from protocol long enough to possibly help us catch a killer. Maybe even a serial killer." She watched him, confused and upset. But she remained silent. "And it's not just that. This morning, when I wanted to tell you about Gail, all you could do was go on with you job. Like that was the most important thing in the world to you. And you know why I wanted to tell you about it? Because I like you, Andy. I like you, and you like being a cop."

Andy's heart ached. She'd heard those words before, and that hadn't ended well. Involuntarily, her mind flashed back to Sam's face after she was reinstated.

_"All you care about is being a good cop, and all I care about is you." His face was resolute, immobile, and cold. He'd said his piece, and he shut down. He was trying to shut down those feelings, but she wasn't about to let that happen. Now that she knew they were there for sure, she wasn't letting them hide anymore._

And here she was, roughly a year and a half later, hearing the same words from a different man she had those same feelings for. And she was not about to let her relationship with Nick end before it started just because she couldn't get over following the rules.

"Nick," she said softly. He glanced up at her out of the corner of his eye, warily taking her in. She knew her words wouldn't be enough to convince him that she felt the same way, but she had to do something. "I like you, too. I really like you, too."

He stood slowly, facing her with his arms crossed over his chest. "Is that right?"

"Yeah." And she decided to take action. If words weren't going to be enough, and they weren't, she wasn't going to let him walk away without understanding how she felt. After that, if he wanted to walk away still, he could. It would hurt her like hell, but she couldn't make him keep her if he didn't want to. She stepped into him, grabbing hold of his shoulders and feeling his strong forearms against her collarbone. She leaned up on her tiptoes and pressed her lips firmly against his. Not forcefully, but steadily. She wasn't going to back down until he made her. She moved her mouth over his, trying to convey how much he really did matter to her.

After a moment or two, when Andy had almost lost her nerve and pulled away, he kissed her back. Her eyes drifted shut in pleasure and she softened her hands on his shoulders, sweeping them up to his neck. He moved his hands to hold her waist, his thumbs rubbing softly on her stomach. He swept his tongue along the seam of her lips and coaxed her to open her mouth to him. His tongue rushed in, and she found herself pressed against the door of his truck in the empty parking lot of 15 Division, the setting sun casting a romantic haze on the walled-in space.

She sighed as she felt his hands move around to her back and pull her closer than she had been before. She was caught up in the happiness, the joy of finally having this man's mouth on hers for no reason other than that she wanted to. They had never shared a kiss this deep, this special, when they had been undercover. And it felt _good_. Andy could have happily let herself kiss him, right here in the middle of the parking lot, where all her coworkers could see, for the rest of the night. But she felt him beginning to pull away. He held her bottom lip lightly between his teeth and licked his tongue over it, then he pressed a soft kiss to her upper one.

They stood together, still pressed against each other, breathing hard. Their foreheads rested against each other, each looking into the hoer's eyes carefully. "Well," she said after a moment. "That was… more than I expected."

"What did you expect?" He lifted his head and slid his arms out from around her. She immediately bemoaned the loss of his body heat and the security of his solid muscles as he stepped back a few paces.

"Honestly? I expected a kind, gentle shove away, and a platonic offer for a ride home," she said.

His eyebrows raised. "Believe me, Andy, the feelings I have for you are anything but platonic." He smiled his charming grin at her, and she shook her head at him. "But, seriously, Andy, I was telling the truth. I like you. And I don't like you just for your kissing, though if I can never kiss you again, I will be disappointed."

She smiled at him, too. "I feel the same. About liking you and about the kissing. So, why don't we… try?"

He took another step back. "I don't know about that. I'm gonna have to think about it and get back to you." He turned around and took two steps, leaving Andy heartbroken behind him. He spun around quickly again to face her. "Alright, I thought about it, and I'm in."

He smiled easily at her and she laughed incredulously. "Really? You're in? Really?"

"Yeah, really," he stepped back up to her and placed a soft kiss on her mouth. "And I'm in it for the long haul." He took her hands and smiled down into her face. "Now. How about that completely not platonic ride home?"

She shook her head, laughing, and playfully elbowed him in the ribs, making her way out from in between his body and the truck. She walked away backward, watching him as she went. "See you tomorrow, Collins."

"Tomorrow, McNally." He sent her that charming smile of his and she couldn't help but grin back as she stepped backwards into her car. She turned around to look at what had tripped her up and broke into laughter when she saw she had unwittingly walked into her own car. She could hear Nick's laughter following her as she sat down in the car. It had been a good night. Even though they had lost Bob Smith. Her life was finally looking up.

xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx

"Hey, Luke." Traci stood in the doorway, watching him as he sorted papers on the desk. He was transferring back to 15 Division for good, not just for a case. He was moving everything back into his desk when she'd called his name. He looked up to see her standing in the door.

"Hi, Traci. What's going on?"

She smiled at him slightly. "I took your advice. I'm not going to dinner with Dex. Turns out he hasn't matured as much as I thought he had. I caught him playing video games with his two friends when I called to tell him I wasn't going tonight." He nodded at her news, but remained silent. "I just wanted to say thank you." They looked at each other in silence for another moment, before she nodded slightly and walked out the door.

"Traci!" He called after her. She turned around and poked her head around the corner of the doorjamb. "I want you to know I'm taking the note seriously. Until we prove this incorrect, I'm treating it as a death threat against a police officer. And if anything else develops in the case, I will do everything in my power to protect you and Leo. I just wanted you to know that."

Traci studied his face for a moment, then smiled. "Thanks, Luke. I'm glad I saw this side of you. I hated thinking you were an ass every time I looked at you, because you never been anything but decent to me. But you hurt my best friend, and for that you must play." She smiled at him again. "Don't think this changes anything, Callaghan. I'm still a tough bitch who can take care of herself and hates you on her friend's behalf. You got it?"

He returned her smile and nodded. "Yeah, I got it. See you tomorrow, Nash."

She nodded and smiled. "See you, Callaghan."


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Hey, guys! Sorry for the wait, but I had a lot of trouble with this chapter. But here we are! This is officially the halfway point for the story, so believe me, people who are waiting on McSwarek and Luke action, have no fear. There's plenty of time. So, yeah, as always, read review, and enjoy!**

"Why am I the only one who's ever on time to parade?" Gail wondered loudly to herself as she walked by the others on her way to the Parade Room.  
Andy, Traci, Nick, Dov, and Chris all rolled their eyes at her. "She likes holding our mistakes over her head. She literally gets pleasure from it," Traci mused in wonder.  
Andy snorted. "You're just now realizing this?" Traci tipped her head in acknowledgement. "But, whatever she says, we should go."  
The rookies nodded and stood up to file into the Parade Room. Andy and Nick sat together at one table, the others spread out in the room. They hadn't told anyone about their new relationship, mainly because they had yet to define it. They hadn't had the exclusive/open-casual/serious conversation yet, and Andy was nervous they were both scared of the other's answer. She didn't know if she'd be able to bear it if he decided he wanted an open, casual relationship.  
She'd decided after they kissed that she would be faithful to him, even if he decided he didn't want to be exclusive. She knew how it felt to be cheated on. She would never do that to again, she had kissed Sam during the beginning of her relationship with Luke. Maybe he was just her weakness.  
"Alright, everybody, we've got a lot to cover today." Frank's voice jarred her out of her thoughts. "First off, there's a change of position for the double homicide case. It's now under Detective Callaghan's command, and he's going to make a few more changes as we try to uncover the details of these two murders. Detective Callaghan."  
There was a spattering of applause as Frank stepped down and Luke took his place in front of the officers. "Okay, then. Now, the majority of you can go ahead and look at your assignments on the board. I need Detectives Swarek and Nash, and Officers Peck, Price, Dias, Epstein, Collins, Cruz, Shaw, and McNally. The rest of you may go."  
The officers who were not called stand up from their seats and make their way to the back of the room to quickly check assignments before leaving. The group that is left, along with Frank, sit scattered around the room.  
"The first order of business is a new undercover mission," Luke said, holding up a hand when Sam, Andy, and Nick all opened their mouths in concern. "It's completely free of Guns and Gangs, don't worry. We won't have Boyd or Blackstone in charge of any of you, I promise. I want at least one detective in on this." He looked at Sam and Traci, who glanced between each other.  
"I think Swarek should do it," Traci said. "I've got Leo, and you've got nothing to tie you here."  
"Is that true?" Luke asked, looking somewhat put out. That had Andy rolling her eyes. She knew Luke and Sam had never had the best relationship, even before there had been anything between Luke and Jo. And now that he'd come back, their relationship was strained again. If Luke started getting jealous of Sam not having a girlfriend anymore, she was in for trouble. From all three of the men. She knew Sam already didn't like Nick, but she had no clue what Luke thought of him.  
She marveled at her thoughts. Not many other women in the world could say they had three men legitimately wrapped around her fingers. That thought crossed her mind, closely followed by a small inner smile. Then again, that could be kind of fun…  
"Yeah, it's true." Sam's voice interrupted her thoughts. She needed to stay focused.  
"Fine, Swarek it is," Luke sounded somewhat tense, but if the whole room hadn't known why, it wouldn't have sounded that different. "I need at least one other person in on this, both for the safety of Detective Swarek and for the sake of more information and less suspicious circumstances for our targets."  
The officers looked amongst themselves. There was silence in the room for a few moments.  
"I think McNally and Collins should go as well." All heads turned to see Marlo sitting alone at a table. Andy was somewhat horrified. Was there a worse possible group to go into this? Yes, she answered herself sarcastically. Her, Nick, Sam, and Luke. Then again, Luke would be their handler if they went, so he was kind of on the team. "Think about it," Marlo continued. "They worked together undercover for months, they're partners, they know how to operate together. Swarek helped train both of them. And McNally and Swarek used to be partners."  
Had the rest of the people in the room not known the long, sordid story of Sam and Andy's relationship, and then the ending of Marlo and Sam's relationship, they would have missed the slight change in the timbre of her voice when she spoke about their partnership. They would have assumed she was talking about them as partners. But they did know, and everyone understood that Andy shared a certain bond with both Sam and Nick. It was true that they'd be able to gauge each other's emotions.  
"Okay," Luke said, clearing his throat to clear the uncomfortable silence in the room. Not that it did much, because he had history with Andy as well. She felt herself wishing she could sink down in the seat. She was the cause of the extreme discomfort in the room. "Any objections?"  
No one in the room raised her hand, but Andy wanted to shout "Me! I object! I do not want to be cooped up in an apartment with my ex and the man I thought was the love of my life, with only my ex-fiancee to talk to!" But, of course, she couldn't say that. She couldn't put the awkwardness everyone was feeling into words or it would suddenly become strikingly real.  
"That's settled, then," Luke said, somewhat broodingly. "Swarek and Collins will pose as brothers; McNally will pose as one of their girlfriends." His gaze flicked over Andy, Sam, and Nick. "You can all choose whose girlfriend she is."  
Wow. She might have been the reason behind it, but she was not the cause of the tension that would be ever-present in the undercover apartment.  
"You will all be put into the neighborhood where the double homicide and the break in a few days later occurred," Luke continued, making Andy pay attention. This was information she'd need for the undercover mission. "One of you will be getting a job in the neighborhood of the gas station, hopefully at the gas station itself; one of you will be posing as a guidance counselor at the school, where the young couple go to school. The third can pick their profession, and is mainly going to be there for the safety of the others and to make the cover story more convincing. Again, I'll leave it up to you to decide who goes where."  
"When do we leave?" Sam asked from the back of the room.  
"Tonight," Luke replied, an almost pleased glimmer appearing in his eyes at Sam's expression of shock."That's why the three of you are dismissed from duty today. You are free to go home and pack." When they just sat there, Luke raised his eyebrows at them and said, "And that was now."  
Looking back and forth between each other, Sam, Nick, and Andy got up hesitantly and walked out of the room. Andy knew Luke was pissed off about her love life, and he was taking it out on all of them, but she had never thought he'd be rude or let his feelings interfere with his work. So much for what she thought she knew about him.

"You ready to go?" Luke stood in Andy's living room later that day, waiting as she zipped up a bag. She glanced around, checking for any last objects she wanted to take undercover with her. They were staying in Toronto this time, but they still were not allowed to have contact with anyone.  
"Uh, yeah, I think so." She wiped her hands down the back of her jeans. It was incredibly awkward, standing there like they weren't both remembering the times he'd picked her up for a date or decided to stay over after one. "Let's go," she said after a tension-filled minute. He nodded hesitantly, glancing around before backing out of the room.  
They reached the truck, where Sam and Nick were already sitting in the backseat. Both of them looked like they were ready to kill each other, or Luke, but Andy was not about to let that happen. If she was going to go undercover again, she was going to prove she could do it successfully. Something had always gotten in the way before. She'd always done something wrong. She wasn't ready to let that happen again, and her record seriously needed the help. She was almost certain one more undercover screwup would get her fired.  
Everyone, including Andy, was silent as she climbed into the front seat of the truck. Luke started it up and pulled out into the road, away from her apartment. She turned, ignoring the faces of the men who complicated her life and watched as her apartment building shrunk and eventually disappeared as they rounded a corner in the grid of city streets. She knew it couldn't be a long drive, but it felt like forever. They were separating themselves form the lives they lived and taking on new identities.  
What seemed like hours later, both due to the uncomfortable silence in the car and the unusual sadness Andy was feeling, they pulled up to the same building Sam had stayed in during his last undercover mission. Which she had screwed up. Memories flooded her mind.  
She and Sam, naked in the bed. She and Sam, naked on the floor. She and Sam, naked… okay, pretty much all over the apartment. But there was also the fear she'd felt when Sam was gone. She glanced back and her eyes were met by Sam's piercing ones. She sometimes felt like they could see into her soul, could tell what she was feeling and what she was thinking. It unnerved her. As if his gaze was doing just that, he smirked at her.  
She instantly shifted her eyes to Nick's, who were looking at her in concern. She instantly scolded herself for think about Sam in the way she had been. She had a great guy who cared about her, who wanted to spend time with her and not some other woman. She smiled at him and turned back around. She missed the way Sam shifted his eyes over to Nick when he back was turned.  
"Okay, remember," Luke said, breaking into Andy's thoughts. "You're playing a character, but the character is going to be based on yourself. Tell the truth as often as possible, and there's less of chance that you'll run into trouble for contradicting yourself. Get your things sorted out. We start tomorrow."  
She nodded slightly and ducked out of the front seat of the truck, sensing Nick and Sam exiting behind her. They climbed the stairs to the apartment in silence and stood, staring at each other, or Sam and Nick were almost glaring, and she finally clapped her hands. "Okay, well, I'm going to stick my stuff in the bedroom. We can rotate between the bed, the couch, and the floor."  
"No," was the automatic response from both men. She looked between them in confusion.  
"You're not sleeping on the floor, Andy," Nick said in a firm tone. She narrowed her eyes at him, but he just stared right back and raised his eyebrows. "You're not."  
Sam cleared his throat. "He's right, Andy. We can rotate between the floor and the coach. You can have the bed."  
"Okay, this is just like any other undercover mission, guys." She wanted to roll her eyes at their testosterone poisoning. "Just because you're both men and I'm a woman doesn't mean I can't sleep on the floor once every third night."  
Nick stepped up to her and took her hands, looking into her eyes. "Andy." She looked carefully into his eyes, unsure if she could stand the tenderness there. Damn Sam Swarek. "You are not sleeping on the floor on my watch. Go put your stuff in the bedroom."  
She narrowed her eyes at him, then finally rolled them. "Fine. But don't think this is over." She turned on her heel and walked into the bedroom. She shoved her things onto the floor and sat down on the bed, glancing around. So many memories of that room. After a moment, she stood and walked to the door, but paused when she heard Sam and Nick talking to each other through the wood.  
"She can be my girlfriend," she heard Sam say. "We've already posed as a couple, it would make the process easier."  
"No way in hell," Nick's voice floated through the air.  
"What makes you think the two of you would be more convincing?"  
There was a long, heavy pause, and she held her breath, unsure of what was next. "Because she's my girlfriend in real life."  
Andy hadn't known she was waiting to hear those words until he said them. But as soon as he did, she was filled with a sense of relief and happiness. She was truly excited to be publicly his girlfriend. As complicated as her feelings for Sam were, her feelings for Nick were simple: she liked him. And it was definitely worth seeing where their relationship could go. Hearing all she needed to hear, she opened the door and stepped back into the room.

The next morning, they went their separate ways for work. Andy was chosen to be the school counselor, Sam to work at the convenience store, and Nick was wandering the neighborhood, looking for any information he could get on either Jerry's death or the double murder.  
He was walking down the street by a basketball court when he stopped. On the court with about nine other guys was none other than Vince Rossario. Nick shook his head. Vince had been in and out of 15 Division for years, for anything from possession to robbery. Luckily enough, he didn't know Nick. Nick had never been around when Vince had been brought in. It was perfect. He knew Vince had gang relations, and he needed to get some information on the case. If anyone unconnected to the murders knew about them, it would be a few of the gangs.  
He stepped into the court and caught the ball when it rolled his way. Vince jogged over and held out his hand. "Thanks, man."  
"Mind if I join?" Nick tossed the ball back to Vince, who surveyed him for a minute, than nodded.  
"You look like you fit in here." He turned his back and Nick followed him back to the group of guys playing. "What's your name?"  
"Nick." He said, watching as they grouped up in front of him.  
"Well, Nick," Vince said. "I'm Vince. And before you play with us, I need to know something."  
"Sure." Nick's inner panic button activated, but he kept himself calm. If this was going to get him into the gang, which was the best possible place for him to be, he needed to do it.  
"You ever heard anything about the Mickey Cobras?" Nick was eyed with suspicion, but that was to be expected.  
"Uh, yeah, why?"  
"You want in with us, you get in with them." Vince's gaze didn't waver. "We tell them about you, you make a demonstration, they initiate you."  
"A demonstration?"  
"One guy recently killed two people at a drugstore." A lightbulb flickered on in Nick's brain. The double homicide had gang connections. "Another guy about a year ago killed a detective from 15 Division." And there was the link he'd been looking for,  
"I'll think about it." Nick nodded. If he needed a demonstration, it might be harder to get in with them than he'd thought. But it was his job, so he'd think of something. "Can we still play?"  
They glanced at each other, then turned back to face Nick. Vince spoke with a smirk on his face. "Yeah, dude. For today. But don't come back until you've made up your mind."  
Nick nodded solemnly and caught the ball when it was passed forcefully to him. "Let's play."

Nick entered the apartment that night with a grin on his face. "Honey, I'm home."

"She's not back yet," came Sam's sullen and grumpy reply. Not that that was out of ordinary, but now he had the satisfaction of knowing why. "She called about five minutes ago and said she'd be her soon. Any minute now."  
Nick nodded and dropped himself into the couch, opposite where Sam sat on a chair. Five silent minutes later, the door opened again and Andy walked in. "Hey, guys, good day?" She dropped her purse on the table and sat down next to Nick, brushing a chaste kiss over his lips. It felt good to be able to do that again, and even better to know she could finally torment Sam back for the hell he'd put her through.  
"Yeah, actually I got a lot of intel on the case." Sam and Andy looked at him in confusion. Was it possible that the one of them that hadn't been specifically assigned a task by Luke had managed to make more headway than either of the two who had?  
"What'd you learn?" Nick leaned forward, and proceeded to tell them about the connection between Jerry's death and the double homicide.


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Okay, before I say anything else, I'm really, really sorry it's been so long. School is starting up again and I've had so much to deal with. But here's chapter ten, so read, review, and enjoy! And hopefully I'll have eleven up in less time than I took to write this one!**

"Frank, we just need you to come in for a few minutes." Sam voice said through the phone. Noelle looked up at her new husband and shook her head fervently, then returned to kissing along his neck. He looked at her regretfully and lifted himself off of her. She looked up at him, grumbling, but adjusted her shirt and sat upright on the bed.  
"Okay, Sam, we'll be there in a few minutes," Frank rolled his eyes and tugged Noelle up by her hand so she stood against him. He closed the phone and leaned down so her mouth was right beneath his. "We'll finish this when we get back," he rumbled against her. She smiled and nodded.

Twenty minutes later, Frank and Noelle were walking through a pitch black 15 Division. Confused, Frank yelled for the team. "Swarek? Shaw? McNally? Peck? Epstein? Dias? What the hell's going on? Is there another blackout?"  
They entered the Parade Room, and suddenly, the lights flipped on and the entire Division jumped out from underneath desks and behind corners, yelling, "Welcome back!" Frank blinked harshly, then shook his head with a bemused smile on his face before opening his eyes again.  
"I should have known."  
Sam stepped forward, grinning like the cat who ate the canary. "Yeah, you should have known."  
Frank shook his head at his friend again. "So this is what you decide to do with your night off? Throw a surprise welcome back for me and my new wife?" He pulled Noelle into his side and smiled down at her. By that time, everyone else in the room was mingling and talking amongst themselves, waiting for the couple to break away from Sam and join the party.  
Andy leaned her hip against one of the tables that held the refreshments. So far, their undercover mission had proved fairly pointless. Since the first day, none of them had really learned anything about the case. Nick had gotten in with the Mickey Cobras, but hadn't been able to weed out the evidence he needed yet. Being a cop, the demonstration was actually a lot easier than they had anticipated. They were able to stick someone in a bullet proof vest and have Nick shoot him, aiming in only the area of the vest. And, being cops, they were able to get an actor who had no qualms about hoodwinking the gang.  
But the undercover apartment was much less fun than Andy had anticipated. She thought she'd be able to rub her relationship with Nick in Sam's face, just to get him back for what he'd done to her with Marlo. But he didn't seem to care. Every time she kissed Nick, or made a point of being couple-y with him, Sam seemed emotionless. And not emotionless in the way that she could tell something was wrong. Emotionless, as in just… normal. And that pissed her off. He should at least have the decency to act like their relationship was still upsetting him as it should have been.  
But that was just it. It wasn't still upsetting him. Hell, maybe it never upset him.  
She couldn't afford to think that way. She knew he'd cared about her. She knew it had hurt him to see her leave. She had no right to expect him to still feel that way when both of then had moved on to new people. Both of them were able to be with other people and function the way they should, with no messed up guilt or resentment for things in their pasts that still affected their presents. Things with Marlo and Nick were… easy. Happy. Light.  
Andy didn't have to worry that she was going to have to face serious repercussions in the relationship because the relationship wasn't serious. And Sam didn't have to worry that he would get home one day and find Marlo gone along with his heart because he knew that her leaving wouldn't break his heart. It might bruise his ego, but it wouldn't break his heart. Andy was still the only one who'd managed to do that. Or so she hoped. She had to mentally scold herself again for making assumptions about his relationship with Marlo.  
Trying to get her mind off her musings, she turned around and grabbed a piece of cake from the refreshments table. Stuffing her face with sugar had always made her feel better. She sighed, trying to think of something other than her ex-boyfriend and her current boyfriend and their stupid ass male testosterone-motivated pissing contest. Sure, Sam didn't care that she was now dating Nick. But he sure as hell cared that Nick was doing better on the case than he was. That just made her feel so much better.  
Sighing again, she stabbed her cake with her fork and turned back to observe the party. She was happy Frank was back. Not that it really applied to her then, as she'd be going back undercover in about three hours, but she knew it would take a lot of the stress off of the detectives and senior officers who were trying to delegate and yet solve the mystery that was plaguing the Division. And, of court, she missed Frank. He and Oliver had been like surrogate father figures for her.  
"Hey." Nick's voice floated into her ear as he pressed a kiss to the side of her cheek. She smiled as she felt his warmth all along her back. He was all hard, solid, hot muscle, and she loved the feeling in her chest whenever she was around him, where she just felt safe.  
She turned back and saw him grinning at her like a kid in a candy store. "You look like you're having fun."  
"I am." His smile grew wider, if that was at all possible. "I finally feel like I don't have to hide anything from anyone."  
"Oh yeah?" She smiled and leaned up so he could gently press his lips to hers. "Well, you know, I don't actually hate it either."  
"Wow, I'm overwhelmed with your flood of emotion." She shook her head at his sarcasm.  
"You're ridiculous, you know that?" He kissed her again and carefully put down her slice of cake before pulling back and dragging her to the center of the floor to dance.  
Hmmm. Maybe all she needed to forget about Sam was… Nick.

Sam sat across the room, his back resting against a table. He watched as Andy danced with and kissed Nick in the center of the room. His jaw clenched and unclenched. A moment later, someone stepped up beside him, someone small and delicate in stature. He didn't move his head, unable to look away from the scene in front of him. He had no right to be jealous, he knew that. But he kind of always thought she'd be there, waiting for him if or when he and Marlo were done.  
"You know this is your fault right?" The soft voice said from beside him.  
"What the hell was I supposed to do, Sarah?" He still found himself unable to look away.  
"You were supposed to wait until you were over her to move on to a different girl." Why was it that his sister always managed to make him feel like a stupid teenager? "But you didn't. You moved on to a perfectly good, nice girl to get over her. And that's why you still feel like this."  
"So what now, Sarah? What am I supposed to do?" He finally turned to face his sister. As strange as it was for a grown man, he always turned to her when he wasn't sure of what he needed to do. It seemed to him like she knew everything.  
"Now you do what's right and break up with Marlo."  
"What?" He looked at her in complete and utter confusion. "How is that what's right? That would completely break her heart!" He had no clue why Sarah thought this was going to fix everything, but it sure as hell didn't seem like a good plan to him. Sure, everything seemed easy in the relationship, but relationships with no strings had a tendency to develop them, at least on one side. And he had had a feeling for a while that Marlo had feelings…. Okay, so he had known for a while that she had feelings. Maybe he had even been leading her on. But it still didn't seem like a good idea to break up with her.  
"You're still with her. You're telling her you're still willing to be in this relationship. And you're not. The only relationship you're willing to be in right now is the one you and Andy used to have. And it's going to take you a long time to get over her. It's going to suck. But at least it's only going to suck for you."  
He turned his head again, back to face Andy and Nick where they were slowly swaying back and forth on the floor. Maybe Sarah was right.

Chloe stood at the side of the room next to the punch bowl. So far, nothing extremely interesting had happened. Sam was wired. He thought no one could tell that he was still in love with Andy, but everyone knew.  
Glancing around her, she noticed Gail on the other side of the punch bowl, glaring at her. Glancing side to side, she made sure there was no one else around before turning back to Gail. "You got a problem?"  
"Yeah, I do," Gail snapped back. "It's not with you. It's with men in general."  
Chloe raised her eyebrows. "I share your sentiment. Except mine is with one guy in particular, but you know, same thing."  
"I just… I wish there was some way to just make them see how we feel. Why do they not understand subtlety?"  
"They're men. Subtle for them is bright neon letters."  
"It's just… Ugh!" Gail groaned and dropped her head back. Chloe smirked as she watched Gail struggle with the worldwide plague that was the male species. Maybe she could do something to help…  
She turned to Gail as the other woman lifted her head, smirking. Before Gail could get anything out of her mouth, Chloe had sealed her lips over Gail's. A short, shocking moment later, Chloe pulled back. She walked away, grinning hugely. "Maybe men just aren't for you." Gail stared after the other woman in shock as she walked away, the sassy sway of her hips exaggerated in her cockiness. A few minutes later, Dov wandered over to pour a ladle of punch into his plastic cup. He discreetly pulled a small flask out of his pocket and let a small stream fall into the cup. He tilted the flask her way, but she shook her head, the glare returning to her face.  
He squinted at her, confused. "What the hell's wrong with you?"  
"You!" She whispered. But her whisper was harsh. "You are my fucking problem, Epstein! What the hell's wrong with you?"  
He stared at her in complete and utter confusion. "Me? What'd I do?"  
"You had sex with Chloe!"  
He smirked. "And judging by that kiss I just witnessed, you're… jealous?"  
"You saw that?" She was taken aback. It kind of put a dent in her anger to hear that he was joking with her about a kiss that had been forced upon her. She knew, now that the initial shock had worn off, that Chloe wanted to make her consider going with women, but that wasn't happening. The kiss wasn't that good.  
"Yeah, I saw that." He chuckled and took a sip of his spiked drink. "So, you and Chloe, huh? I thought that was just a me thing."  
She glared and shook her head. "You're an asshole."  
"Why am I an asshole?" He looked offended, and she had no clue why. She was the ice queen. It wasn't exactly a surprise that she was insulting him.  
"Because you slept with her!" Her voice broke. "You slept with her and not me, and you can't seem to see that all I wanted was for you to notice me." She turned away, not wanting him to see the weakness in her eyes. She was the ice queen. She had an image to uphold.  
"Notice you?" He grabbed her arm and spun her back around. "Notice you, Gail? I was half in love with you before Nick came back. God knows I noticed you. I noticed you when you were with Chris. I noticed you when you were with Nick." HIs voice lowered. "I notice you now."  
"God, you don't get it, do you?" She rolled her eyes.  
"Get what? God, Gail, you're not making any sense! What don't I get?"  
"Sure, you notice me. But you don't notice me. You always choose someone else over me. Like Chloe."  
"That's because you always chose someone else over me!" She spun around, waving her hand.  
"You know what, Epstein? I'm done." He watched her walk away, still confused. Half the time, Gail confused the hell out of him even when they weren't talking feelings. Adding female emotion and hormones into that just made him feel even more out of his depth. He shook his head. It would work itself out.

"You sure you're okay with missing the welcome back party?" Luke sat in 15 Division, next to Traci. Both of them had elected to work late on the cases. Luke couldn't stand seeing Andy with both Sam and Nick more than he did every day when he monitored their undercover work. Traci just really wanted to bring some closure to her life. She couldn't move on until she knew the part of her life that involved Jerry was over.  
"Yeah, I'm sure." She breathed out a heavy sigh. "I just… I need to get this done, Luke. I need it closed." He saw the sincerity in her eyes, the desperation to figure out what was threatening not only her, but the whole Division.  
"Okay." He nodded, looking straight back into her eyes. "Okay, so we've been operating under the assumption that the note you received was connected to the undercover operation. We should figure out if that's really true. Because if not, we have way more on our hands than we thought. And a gang case is enough, so as awful as that sounds, we gotta hope there's a connection there."  
She nodded solemnly. "We know that the guy who killed Jerry has gang connections and knows who killed those two guys at the drugstore. Would the gang have access to a calligrapher with those kinds of forfeit skills? I mean, that thing tricked me, there's no way an amateur did that."  
"The Mickey Cobras? Hell yeah, they would. Trace, they run half of Toronto." He shook his head. "We know they're connected. We just have to prove it. So how?"  
"What kinds of calligraphers do this kind of work?" She ruffled through a few papers on the desk until she found a photocopy of the letter she'd been sent. "We can narrow down the search to them. Maybe we can get a description out of one of them."  
Luke nodded slowly. "Process of elimination. Right. That's good. Alright, let's look them up."  
Four hours later, at a quarter past three in the morning, Traci slumped back in her seat. "So there he is." She pulled a photocopy of a faxed sketch from the machine. They'd made calls, eliminated possible calligraphers until they'd found which one the gang must have used, and managed to ring enough of a bell and scare the guy into line enough to provide a description over the phone to a sketch artist. The sketch had then been faxed to them.  
"We found him." Luke stood and looked over Traci's shoulder. "So, who the hell is he?" She shook her head, unable to answer his question.

"Okay, everyone, first order of business." Frank's voice boomed from the front of the Parade Room. "Thank you all for the welcome back party last Friday night. I know we all had a good time, despite the interruption to my private time with my wife." A chuckle ran through the crowd at Frank's playful guilt trip. "Next up, you all know Detectives Callaghan and Nash got a sketch of the guy who sent the note to Nash. No name, but that was to be expected. We don't usually get names off of gang cases, or at least, not real ones. For the majority of you, this means nothing. You'll continue on patrol as usual. Dias, Shaw, and Cruz, you three will be taken off normal patrol to sweep the city for information. You're looking for anyone the recognizes the sketch or has any information about the double homicide or Jerry's death. Any information could be helpful."  
Chris, Oliver, and Marlo nodded silently as they accepted their task. "Okay, everyone, that's all for today. Serve, protect, and figure this shit out."  
They all stood to check car assignments. Chris, Oliver, and Marlo turned to face each other. "Okay, I'm just going to say it," Chris said after a silent and heavy moment. "Who's riding in the back?"


	11. Author's Note

Hey, guys! I'm so sorry it's been so long, but I've been debating a rating change, both for the language and for Andy's relationships, so this chapter has been taking me a while to write. So, because of that, I'm gonna leave it up to you guys, my amazing followers and reviewers! Let me know in the comments or PM me if you'd like the rating to go up to an M or stay where it is at a T. Thanks so much guys! Hopefully after this, I'll have the chapter up soon. You're the best!


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